Computer Support for Conducting Supportability Trade-Offs in a Team Setting

DTIC Science & Technology

1990-01-01

maintenance visits, and spares costs. To minimize the total system LCC, which includes both acquisition and support costs, a method for obtaining the...from different departments with a range of skills to work for a common goal is not an easy task. Ignoring the logistical concerns, a fundamental problem...maintenance visits, and spares costs. To minimize the total system LCC, which includes both acquisition and support costs, a method for obtaining the

Application of the System Identification Technique to Goal-Directed Saccades.

DTIC Science & Technology

1984-07-30

1983 to May 31, 1984 by the AFOSR under Grant No. AFOSR-83-0187. 1. Salaries & Wages $7,257 2. Employee Benefits $ 4186 3. Indirect Costs $1,177 *’ 1...Equipment $2,127 DEC VT100 Terminal Computer Terminal Table & Chair Computer Interface 5. Travel $ 672 6. Miscellaneous Expenses 281 Computer Costs ...Telephone Xeroxing Report Costs Total $12,000 A 1cc;3t Ion r . ;. ., ’o n. e, Ef V r CI3 k.i *r 7’r’ ’ - s-I - . CLef • -- * 0 - -- -, r ~ 𔄁 . r w

Measuring costs of data collection at village clinics by village doctors for a syndromic surveillance system-a cross sectional survey from China.

PubMed

Ding, Yan; Fei, Yang; Xu, Biao; Yang, Jun; Yan, Weirong; Diwan, Vinod K; Sauerborn, Rainer; Dong, Hengjin

2015-07-25

Studies into the costs of syndromic surveillance systems are rare, especially for estimating the direct costs involved in implementing and maintaining these systems. An Integrated Surveillance System in rural China (ISSC project), with the aim of providing an early warning system for outbreaks, was implemented; village clinics were the main surveillance units. Village doctors expressed their willingness to join in the surveillance if a proper subsidy was provided. This study aims to measure the costs of data collection by village clinics to provide a reference regarding the subsidy level required for village clinics to participate in data collection. We conducted a cross-sectional survey with a village clinic questionnaire and a staff questionnaire using a purposive sampling strategy. We tracked reported events using the ISSC internal database. Cost data included staff time, and the annual depreciation and opportunity costs of computers. We measured the village doctors' time costs for data collection by multiplying the number of full time employment equivalents devoted to the surveillance by the village doctors' annual salaries and benefits, which equaled their net incomes. We estimated the depreciation and opportunity costs of computers by calculating the equivalent annual computer cost and then allocating this to the surveillance based on the percentage usage. The estimated total annual cost of collecting data was 1,423 Chinese Renminbi (RMB) in 2012 (P25 = 857, P75 = 3284), including 1,250 RMB (P25 = 656, P75 = 3000) staff time costs and 134 RMB (P25 = 101, P75 = 335) depreciation and opportunity costs of computers. The total costs of collecting data from the village clinics for the syndromic surveillance system was calculated to be low compared with the individual net income in County A.

Predicting Cost/Performance Trade-Offs for Whitney: A Commodity Computing Cluster

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Becker, Jeffrey C.; Nitzberg, Bill; VanderWijngaart, Rob F.; Kutler, Paul (Technical Monitor)

1997-01-01

Recent advances in low-end processor and network technology have made it possible to build a "supercomputer" out of commodity components. We develop simple models of the NAS Parallel Benchmarks version 2 (NPB 2) to explore the cost/performance trade-offs involved in building a balanced parallel computer supporting a scientific workload. We develop closed form expressions detailing the number and size of messages sent by each benchmark. Coupling these with measured single processor performance, network latency, and network bandwidth, our models predict benchmark performance to within 30%. A comparison based on total system cost reveals that current commodity technology (200 MHz Pentium Pros with 100baseT Ethernet) is well balanced for the NPBs up to a total system cost of around $1,000,000.

The economics of time shared computing: Congestion, user costs and capacity

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Agnew, C. E.

1982-01-01

Time shared systems permit the fixed costs of computing resources to be spread over large numbers of users. However, bottleneck results in the theory of closed queueing networks can be used to show that this economy of scale will be offset by the increased congestion that results as more users are added to the system. If one considers the total costs, including the congestion cost, there is an optimal number of users for a system which equals the saturation value usually used to define system capacity.

24 CFR 968.105 - Definitions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... not exceed 90 percent of the computed Total Development Cost (TDC) for a new development with the same structure type and number and size of units in the market area. Soft costs. The non-physical improvement...

Early assessment of the likely cost-effectiveness of a new technology: A Markov model with probabilistic sensitivity analysis of computer-assisted total knee replacement.

PubMed

Dong, Hengjin; Buxton, Martin

2006-01-01

The objective of this study is to apply a Markov model to compare cost-effectiveness of total knee replacement (TKR) using computer-assisted surgery (CAS) with that of TKR using a conventional manual method in the absence of formal clinical trial evidence. A structured search was carried out to identify evidence relating to the clinical outcome, cost, and effectiveness of TKR. Nine Markov states were identified based on the progress of the disease after TKR. Effectiveness was expressed by quality-adjusted life years (QALYs). The simulation was carried out initially for 120 cycles of a month each, starting with 1,000 TKRs. A discount rate of 3.5 percent was used for both cost and effectiveness in the incremental cost-effectiveness analysis. Then, a probabilistic sensitivity analysis was carried out using a Monte Carlo approach with 10,000 iterations. Computer-assisted TKR was a long-term cost-effective technology, but the QALYs gained were small. After the first 2 years, the incremental cost per QALY of computer-assisted TKR was dominant because of cheaper and more QALYs. The incremental cost-effectiveness ratio (ICER) was sensitive to the "effect of CAS," to the CAS extra cost, and to the utility of the state "Normal health after primary TKR," but it was not sensitive to utilities of other Markov states. Both probabilistic and deterministic analyses produced similar cumulative serious or minor complication rates and complex or simple revision rates. They also produced similar ICERs. Compared with conventional TKR, computer-assisted TKR is a cost-saving technology in the long-term and may offer small additional QALYs. The "effect of CAS" is to reduce revision rates and complications through more accurate and precise alignment, and although the conclusions from the model, even when allowing for a full probabilistic analysis of uncertainty, are clear, the "effect of CAS" on the rate of revisions awaits long-term clinical evidence.

Feasibility study of an Integrated Program for Aerospace-vehicle Design (IPAD) system. Volume 6: Implementation schedule, development costs, operational costs, benefit assessment, impact on company organization, spin-off assessment, phase 1, tasks 3 to 8

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Garrocq, C. A.; Hurley, M. J.; Dublin, M.

1973-01-01

A baseline implementation plan, including alternative implementation approaches for critical software elements and variants to the plan, was developed. The basic philosophy was aimed at: (1) a progressive release of capability for three major computing systems, (2) an end product that was a working tool, (3) giving participation to industry, government agencies, and universities, and (4) emphasizing the development of critical elements of the IPAD framework software. The results of these tasks indicate an IPAD first release capability 45 months after go-ahead, a five year total implementation schedule, and a total developmental cost of 2027 man-months and 1074 computer hours. Several areas of operational cost increases were identified mainly due to the impact of additional equipment needed and additional computer overhead. The benefits of an IPAD system were related mainly to potential savings in engineering man-hours, reduction of design-cycle calendar time, and indirect upgrading of product quality and performance.

76 FR 5192 - BOEMRE Information Collection Activity: 1010-0170-Coastal Impact Assistance Program (CIAP...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2011-01-28

... disclose this information, you should comment and provide your total capital and startup cost components or... use to estimate major cost factors, including system and technology acquisition, expected useful life... startup costs include, among other items, computers and software you purchase to prepare for collecting...

The United States’ Vulnerability to Coercion by China in the Rare Earths Market

DTIC Science & Technology

2012-12-14

a computer, is assembled in a third country. This has brought down the total cost of such products which has had very positive effects on the...world’s economy. When materials or resources can be obtained from multiple sources around the world, costs of procurement and manufacture are lower, which...results in the total cost of goods being overall less expensive. Sometimes there is the possibility of a very dangerous side effect from relying 2

77 FR 5017 - Agency Information Collection Activities; Proposed Collection; Comment Request

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2012-02-01

... 30 percent for computer programming, 20 percent for attorney services, 30 percent for skilled... workers, 25 percent for computer programming, and 20 percent for management time. (d) Dispute resolution...), or a total cost of $421,200. \\12\\ The blended rate is 40 percent for computer programming, 10 percent...

Direct medical cost of overweight and obesity in the United States: a quantitative systematic review

PubMed Central

Tsai, Adam Gilden; Williamson, David F.; Glick, Henry A.

2010-01-01

Objectives To estimate per-person and aggregate direct medical costs of overweight and obesity and to examine the effect of study design factors. Methods PubMed (1968–2009), EconLit (1969–2009), and Business Source Premier (1995–2009) were searched for original studies. Results were standardized to compute the incremental cost per overweight person and per obese person, and to compute the national aggregate cost. Results A total of 33 U.S. studies met review criteria. Among the 4 highest quality studies, the 2008 per-person direct medical cost of overweight was $266 and of obesity was $1723. The aggregate national cost of overweight and obesity combined was $113.9 billion. Study design factors that affected cost estimate included: use of national samples versus more selected populations; age groups examined; inclusion of all medical costs versus obesity-related costs only; and BMI cutoffs for defining overweight and obesity. Conclusions Depending on the source of total national health care expenditures used, the direct medical cost of overweight and obesity combined is approximately 5.0% to 10% of U.S. health care spending. Future studies should include nationally representative samples, evaluate adults of all ages, report all medical costs, and use standard BMI cutoffs. PMID:20059703

Design, processing and testing of LSI arrays, hybrid microelectronics task

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Himmel, R. P.; Stuhlbarg, S. M.; Ravetti, R. G.; Zulueta, P. J.; Rothrock, C. W.

1979-01-01

Mathematical cost models previously developed for hybrid microelectronic subsystems were refined and expanded. Rework terms related to substrate fabrication, nonrecurring developmental and manufacturing operations, and prototype production are included. Sample computer programs were written to demonstrate hybrid microelectric applications of these cost models. Computer programs were generated to calculate and analyze values for the total microelectronics costs. Large scale integrated (LST) chips utilizing tape chip carrier technology were studied. The feasibility of interconnecting arrays of LSU chips utilizing tape chip carrier and semiautomatic wire bonding technology was demonstrated.

Cost Evaluation of Dried Blood Spot Home Sampling as Compared to Conventional Sampling for Therapeutic Drug Monitoring in Children

PubMed Central

Martial, Lisa C.; Aarnoutse, Rob E.; Schreuder, Michiel F.; Henriet, Stefanie S.; Brüggemann, Roger J. M.; Joore, Manuela A.

2016-01-01

Dried blood spot (DBS) sampling for the purpose of therapeutic drug monitoring can be an attractive alternative for conventional blood sampling, especially in children. This study aimed to compare all costs involved in conventional sampling versus DBS home sampling in two pediatric populations: renal transplant patients and hemato-oncology patients. Total costs were computed from a societal perspective by adding up healthcare cost, patient related costs and costs related to loss of productivity of the caregiver. Switching to DBS home sampling was associated with a cost reduction of 43% for hemato-oncology patients (€277 to €158) and 61% for nephrology patients (€259 to €102) from a societal perspective (total costs) per blood draw. From a healthcare perspective, costs reduced with 7% for hemato-oncology patients and with 21% for nephrology patients. Total savings depend on the number of hospital visits that can be avoided by using home sampling instead of conventional sampling. PMID:27941974

Cost Evaluation of Dried Blood Spot Home Sampling as Compared to Conventional Sampling for Therapeutic Drug Monitoring in Children.

PubMed

Martial, Lisa C; Aarnoutse, Rob E; Schreuder, Michiel F; Henriet, Stefanie S; Brüggemann, Roger J M; Joore, Manuela A

2016-01-01

Dried blood spot (DBS) sampling for the purpose of therapeutic drug monitoring can be an attractive alternative for conventional blood sampling, especially in children. This study aimed to compare all costs involved in conventional sampling versus DBS home sampling in two pediatric populations: renal transplant patients and hemato-oncology patients. Total costs were computed from a societal perspective by adding up healthcare cost, patient related costs and costs related to loss of productivity of the caregiver. Switching to DBS home sampling was associated with a cost reduction of 43% for hemato-oncology patients (€277 to €158) and 61% for nephrology patients (€259 to €102) from a societal perspective (total costs) per blood draw. From a healthcare perspective, costs reduced with 7% for hemato-oncology patients and with 21% for nephrology patients. Total savings depend on the number of hospital visits that can be avoided by using home sampling instead of conventional sampling.

An emulator for minimizing computer resources for finite element analysis

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Melosh, R.; Utku, S.; Islam, M.; Salama, M.

1984-01-01

A computer code, SCOPE, has been developed for predicting the computer resources required for a given analysis code, computer hardware, and structural problem. The cost of running the code is a small fraction (about 3 percent) of the cost of performing the actual analysis. However, its accuracy in predicting the CPU and I/O resources depends intrinsically on the accuracy of calibration data that must be developed once for the computer hardware and the finite element analysis code of interest. Testing of the SCOPE code on the AMDAHL 470 V/8 computer and the ELAS finite element analysis program indicated small I/O errors (3.2 percent), larger CPU errors (17.8 percent), and negligible total errors (1.5 percent).

Balancing reliability and cost to choose the best power subsystem

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Suich, Ronald C.; Patterson, Richard L.

1991-01-01

A mathematical model is presented for computing total (spacecraft) subsystem cost including both the basic subsystem cost and the expected cost due to the failure of the subsystem. This model is then used to determine power subsystem cost as a function of reliability and redundancy. Minimum cost and maximum reliability and/or redundancy are not generally equivalent. Two example cases are presented. One is a small satellite, and the other is an interplanetary spacecraft.

B-2 Extremely High Frequency SATCOM and Computer Increment 1 (B-2 EHF Inc 1)

DTIC Science & Technology

2015-12-01

Confidence Level Confidence Level of cost estimate for current APB: 55% This APB reflects cost and funding data based on the B-2 EHF Increment I SCP...This cost estimate was quantified at the Mean (~55%) confidence level . Total Quantity Quantity SAR Baseline Production Estimate Current APB...Production Estimate Econ Qty Sch Eng Est Oth Spt Total 33.624 -0.350 1.381 0.375 0.000 -6.075 0.000 -0.620 -5.289 28.335 Current SAR Baseline to Current

Economic analysis and assessment of syngas production using a modeling approach

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

Kim, Hakkwan; Parajuli, Prem B.; Yu, Fei

Economic analysis and modeling are essential and important issues for the development of current feedstock and process technology for bio-gasification. The objective of this study was to develop an economic model and apply to predict the unit cost of syngas production from a micro-scale bio-gasification facility. An economic model was programmed in C++ computer programming language and developed using a parametric cost approach, which included processes to calculate the total capital costs and the total operating costs. The model used measured economic data from the bio-gasification facility at Mississippi State University. The modeling results showed that the unit cost ofmore » syngas production was $1.217 for a 60 Nm-3 h-1 capacity bio-gasifier. The operating cost was the major part of the total production cost. The equipment purchase cost and the labor cost were the largest part of the total capital cost and the total operating cost, respectively. Sensitivity analysis indicated that labor costs rank the top as followed by equipment cost, loan life, feedstock cost, interest rate, utility cost, and waste treatment cost. The unit cost of syngas production increased with the increase of all parameters with exception of loan life. The annual cost regarding equipment, labor, feedstock, waste treatment, and utility cost showed a linear relationship with percent changes, while loan life and annual interest rate showed a non-linear relationship. This study provides the useful information for economic analysis and assessment of the syngas production using a modeling approach.« less

Radiotherapy Monte Carlo simulation using cloud computing technology.

PubMed

Poole, C M; Cornelius, I; Trapp, J V; Langton, C M

2012-12-01

Cloud computing allows for vast computational resources to be leveraged quickly and easily in bursts as and when required. Here we describe a technique that allows for Monte Carlo radiotherapy dose calculations to be performed using GEANT4 and executed in the cloud, with relative simulation cost and completion time evaluated as a function of machine count. As expected, simulation completion time decreases as 1/n for n parallel machines, and relative simulation cost is found to be optimal where n is a factor of the total simulation time in hours. Using the technique, we demonstrate the potential usefulness of cloud computing as a solution for rapid Monte Carlo simulation for radiotherapy dose calculation without the need for dedicated local computer hardware as a proof of principal.

An economic model to evaluate cost-effectiveness of computer assisted knee replacement surgery in Norway.

PubMed

Gøthesen, Øystein; Slover, James; Havelin, Leif; Askildsen, Jan Erik; Malchau, Henrik; Furnes, Ove

2013-07-06

The use of Computer Assisted Surgery (CAS) for knee replacements is intended to improve the alignment of knee prostheses in order to reduce the number of revision operations. Is the cost effectiveness of computer assisted surgery influenced by patient volume and age? By employing a Markov model, we analysed the cost effectiveness of computer assisted surgery versus conventional arthroplasty with respect to implant survival and operation volume in two theoretical Norwegian age cohorts. We obtained mortality and hospital cost data over a 20-year period from Norwegian registers. We presumed that the cost of an intervention would need to be below NOK 500,000 per QALY (Quality Adjusted Life Year) gained, to be considered cost effective. The added cost of computer assisted surgery, provided this has no impact on implant survival, is NOK 1037 and NOK 1414 respectively for 60 and 75-year-olds per quality-adjusted life year at a volume of 25 prostheses per year, and NOK 128 and NOK 175 respectively at a volume of 250 prostheses per year. Sensitivity analyses showed that the 10-year implant survival in cohort 1 needs to rise from 89.8% to 90.6% at 25 prostheses per year, and from 89.8 to 89.9% at 250 prostheses per year for computer assisted surgery to be considered cost effective. In cohort 2, the required improvement is a rise from 95.1% to 95.4% at 25 prostheses per year, and from 95.10% to 95.14% at 250 prostheses per year. The cost of using computer navigation for total knee replacements may be acceptable for 60-year-old as well as 75-year-old patients if the technique increases the implant survival rate just marginally, and the department has a high operation volume. A low volume department might not achieve cost-effectiveness unless computer navigation has a more significant impact on implant survival, thus may defer the investments until such data are available.

The Potential for Helicopter Passenger Service in Major Urban Areas. [cost analysis

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Dajani, J. S.; Stortstrom, R. G.; Warner, D. B.

1977-01-01

An interurban helicopter cost model having the capability of selecting an efficient helicopter network for a given city in terms of service and total operating costs was developed. This model which is based upon the relationship between total and direct operating costs and the number of block hours of helicopter operation is compiled in terms of a computer program which simulates the operation of an intracity helicopter fleet over a given network. When applied to specific urban areas, the model produces results in terms of a break-even air passenger market penetration rate, which is the percent of the air travelers in each of those areas that must patronize the helicopter network to make it break even commercially. A total of twenty major metropolitan areas are analyzed and are ranked initially according to cost per seat mile and then according to break-even penetration rate.

Economic analysis of the design and fabrication of a space qualified power system

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Ruselowski, G.

1980-01-01

An economic analysis was performed to determine the cost of the design and fabrication of a low Earth orbit, 2 kW photovoltaic/battery, space qualified power system. A commercially available computer program called PRICE (programmed review of information for costing and evaluation) was used to conduct the analysis. The sensitivity of the various cost factors to the assumptions used is discussed. Total cost of the power system was found to be $2.46 million with the solar array accounting for 70.5%. Using the assumption that the prototype becomes the flight system, 77.3% of the total cost is associated with manufacturing. Results will be used to establish whether the cost of space qualified hardware can be reduced by the incorporation of commercial design, fabrication, and quality assurance methods.

[Cost analysis for navigation in knee endoprosthetics].

PubMed

Cerha, O; Kirschner, S; Günther, K-P; Lützner, J

2009-12-01

Total knee arthroplasty (TKA) is one of the most frequent procedures in orthopaedic surgery. The outcome depends on a range of factors including alignment of the leg and the positioning of the implant in addition to patient-associated factors. Computer-assisted navigation systems can improve the restoration of a neutral leg alignment. This procedure has been established especially in Europe and North America. The additional expenses are not reimbursed in the German DRG system (Diagnosis Related Groups). In the present study a cost analysis of computer-assisted TKA compared to the conventional technique was performed. The acquisition expenses of various navigation systems (5 and 10 year depreciation), annual costs for maintenance and software updates as well as the accompanying costs per operation (consumables, additional operating time) were considered. The additional operating time was determined on the basis of a meta-analysis according to the current literature. Situations with 25, 50, 100, 200 and 500 computer-assisted TKAs per year were simulated. The amount of the incremental costs of the computer-assisted TKA depends mainly on the annual volume and the additional operating time. A relevant decrease of the incremental costs was detected between 50 and 100 procedures per year. In a model with 100 computer-assisted TKAs per year an additional operating time of 14 mins and a 10 year depreciation of the investment costs, the incremental expenses amount to 300-395 depending on the navigation system. Computer-assisted TKA is associated with additional costs. From an economical point of view an amount of more than 50 procedures per year appears to be favourable. The cost-effectiveness could be estimated if long-term results will show a reduction of revisions or a better clinical outcome.

Total variation-based neutron computed tomography

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Barnard, Richard C.; Bilheux, Hassina; Toops, Todd; Nafziger, Eric; Finney, Charles; Splitter, Derek; Archibald, Rick

2018-05-01

We perform the neutron computed tomography reconstruction problem via an inverse problem formulation with a total variation penalty. In the case of highly under-resolved angular measurements, the total variation penalty suppresses high-frequency artifacts which appear in filtered back projections. In order to efficiently compute solutions for this problem, we implement a variation of the split Bregman algorithm; due to the error-forgetting nature of the algorithm, the computational cost of updating can be significantly reduced via very inexact approximate linear solvers. We present the effectiveness of the algorithm in the significantly low-angular sampling case using synthetic test problems as well as data obtained from a high flux neutron source. The algorithm removes artifacts and can even roughly capture small features when an extremely low number of angles are used.

Cost Analysis of the STONE Randomized Trial: Can Health Care Costs be Reduced One Test at a Time?

PubMed

Melnikow, Joy; Xing, Guibo; Cox, Ginger; Leigh, Paul; Mills, Lisa; Miglioretti, Diana L; Moghadassi, Michelle; Smith-Bindman, Rebecca

2016-04-01

Decreasing the use of high-cost tests may reduce health care costs. To compare costs of care for patients presenting to the emergency department (ED) with suspected kidney stones randomized to 1 of 3 initial imaging tests. Patients were randomized to point-of-care ultrasound (POC US, least costly), radiology ultrasound (RAD US), or computed tomography (CT, most costly). Subsequent testing and treatment were the choice of the treating physician. A total of 2759 patients at 15 EDs were randomized to POC US (n=908), RAD US, (n=893), or CT (n=958). Mean age was 40.4 years; 51.8% were male. All medical care documented in the trial database in the 7 days following enrollment was abstracted and coded to estimate costs using national average 2012 Medicare reimbursements. Costs for initial ED care and total 7-day costs were compared using nonparametric bootstrap to account for clustering of patients within medical centers. Initial ED visit costs were modestly lower for patients assigned to RAD US: $423 ($411, $434) compared with patients assigned to CT: $448 ($438, $459) (P<0.0001). Total costs were not significantly different between groups: $1014 ($912, $1129) for POC US, $970 ($878, $1078) for RAD US, and $959 ($870, $1044) for CT. Hospital admissions contributed over 50% of total costs, though only 11% of patients were admitted. Mean total costs (and admission rates) varied substantially by site from $749 to $1239. Assignment to a less costly test had no impact on overall health care costs for ED patients. System-level interventions addressing variation in admission rates from the ED might have greater impact on costs.

Costs of cloud computing for a biometry department. A case study.

PubMed

Knaus, J; Hieke, S; Binder, H; Schwarzer, G

2013-01-01

"Cloud" computing providers, such as the Amazon Web Services (AWS), offer stable and scalable computational resources based on hardware virtualization, with short, usually hourly, billing periods. The idea of pay-as-you-use seems appealing for biometry research units which have only limited access to university or corporate data center resources or grids. This case study compares the costs of an existing heterogeneous on-site hardware pool in a Medical Biometry and Statistics department to a comparable AWS offer. The "total cost of ownership", including all direct costs, is determined for the on-site hardware, and hourly prices are derived, based on actual system utilization during the year 2011. Indirect costs, which are difficult to quantify are not included in this comparison, but nevertheless some rough guidance from our experience is given. To indicate the scale of costs for a methodological research project, a simulation study of a permutation-based statistical approach is performed using AWS and on-site hardware. In the presented case, with a system utilization of 25-30 percent and 3-5-year amortization, on-site hardware can result in smaller costs, compared to hourly rental in the cloud dependent on the instance chosen. Renting cloud instances with sufficient main memory is a deciding factor in this comparison. Costs for on-site hardware may vary, depending on the specific infrastructure at a research unit, but have only moderate impact on the overall comparison and subsequent decision for obtaining affordable scientific computing resources. Overall utilization has a much stronger impact as it determines the actual computing hours needed per year. Taking this into ac count, cloud computing might still be a viable option for projects with limited maturity, or as a supplement for short peaks in demand.

Cost-Effectiveness of Primary Care Management With or Without Early Physical Therapy for Acute Low Back Pain: Economic Evaluation of a Randomized Clinical Trial.

PubMed

Fritz, Julie M; Kim, Minchul; Magel, John S; Asche, Carl V

2017-03-01

Economic evaluation of a randomized clinical trial. Compare costs and cost-effectiveness of usual primary care management for patients with acute low back pain (LBP) with or without the addition of early physical therapy. Low back pain is among the most common and costly conditions encountered in primary care. Early physical therapy after a new primary care consultation for acute LBP results in small clinical improvement but cost-effectiveness of a strategy of early physical therapy is unknown. Economic evaluation was conducted alongside a randomized clinical trial of patients with acute, nonspecific LBP consulting a primary care provider. All patients received usual primary care management and education, and were randomly assigned to receive four sessions of physical therapy or usual care of delaying referral consideration to permit spontaneous recovery. Data were collected in a randomized trial involving 220 participants age 18 to 60 with LBP <16 days duration without red flags or signs of nerve root compression. The EuroQoL EQ-5D health states were collected at baseline and after 1-year and used to compute the quality adjusted life year (QALY) gained. Direct (health care utilization) and indirect (work absence or reduced productivity) costs related to LBP were collected monthly and valued using standard costs. The incremental cost-effectiveness ratio was computed as incremental total costs divided by incremental QALYs. Early physical therapy resulted in higher total 1-year costs (mean difference in adjusted total costs = $580, 95% CI: $175, $984, P = 0.005) and better quality of life (mean difference in QALYs = 0.02, 95% CI: 0.005, 0.35, P = 0.008) after 1-year. The incremental cost-effectiveness ratio was $32,058 (95% CI: $10,629, $151,161) per QALY. Our results support early physical therapy as cost-effective relative to usual primary care after 1 year for patients with acute, nonspecific LBP. 2.

33 CFR 277.8 - Procedures for apportionment of costs.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... life bears to the total estimated service life. The share of the bridge owner, thus computed... not have to be met until the bridge had reached the end of its useful life. Accordingly, the present worth of the amount is computed deferred over the unexpired life. The discount rate to be used in the...

33 CFR 277.8 - Procedures for apportionment of costs.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... life bears to the total estimated service life. The share of the bridge owner, thus computed... not have to be met until the bridge had reached the end of its useful life. Accordingly, the present worth of the amount is computed deferred over the unexpired life. The discount rate to be used in the...

33 CFR 277.8 - Procedures for apportionment of costs.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... life bears to the total estimated service life. The share of the bridge owner, thus computed... not have to be met until the bridge had reached the end of its useful life. Accordingly, the present worth of the amount is computed deferred over the unexpired life. The discount rate to be used in the...

33 CFR 277.8 - Procedures for apportionment of costs.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... life bears to the total estimated service life. The share of the bridge owner, thus computed... not have to be met until the bridge had reached the end of its useful life. Accordingly, the present worth of the amount is computed deferred over the unexpired life. The discount rate to be used in the...

Inexpensive Miniature Programmable Magnetic Stirrer from Reconfigured Computer Parts

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mercer, Conan; Leech, Donal

2017-01-01

This technology report outlines a robust and easy to assemble magnetic stirrer that is programmable. All of the parts are recycled from obsolete computer hardware except the Arduino microcontroller and motor driver, at a total cost of around $40. This multidisciplinary approach introduces microcontrollers to students and grants the opportunity to…

Infection risk and cost-effectiveness of commercial bags or glass bottles for total parenteral nutrition.

PubMed

Durand-Zaleski, I; Delaunay, L; Langeron, O; Belda, E; Astier, A; Brun-Buisson, C

1997-03-01

To determine whether the greater daily expense of administering total parenteral nutrition (TPN) via plastic bags changed once daily, compared to glass bottles changed thrice daily, could be offset by savings from a reduction in nosocomial infections. The costs and potential benefits of commercially available TPN bags and TPN in glass containers were compared. Costs were computed from the viewpoint of the hospital, first in a general model and then for two specific examples, Crohn's disease and intensive-care unit (ICU) patients. The extra cost of using bags was $20 per day. The total cost of nosocomial bacteremia was estimated at $6,000. The monetary benefits of using TPN bags were $6,000XT, where XT was the percentage of nosocomial infections averted. We also considered that reduction in intravenous (IV)-line manipulation could reduce bacteremia-related mortality and computed a cost-per-life-saved ratio. Modeling showed that TPN in bags could yield a net benefit when the absolute reduction in the daily risk of nosocomial bacteremia reached the threshold value of 0.3%. Such a reduction could not be attained in patients with Crohn's disease, and corresponded to a 50% to 60% reduction of infection rates in ICU patients. Varying the risk of mortality attributable to IV-line-related infection from 1% to 13% resulted in a cost effectiveness of using TPN bags ranging from $90,000 to $7,000 per life saved in ICU, assuming a two-thirds reduction in IV-line infections, and from $180,000 to $14,000 if the infection rate was reduced by one third. The baseline cost-minimization analysis concluded that the extra cost of TPN bags was not justified by the extra savings. The cost-effectiveness analysis, however, found that the cost per life saved fell within the accepted range of public health interventions, provided a large fraction of infections are averted using TPN bags.

Economic Burden of Heart Failure: Investigating Outpatient and Inpatient Costs in Abeokuta, Southwest Nigeria

PubMed Central

Ogah, Okechukwu S.; Stewart, Simon; Onwujekwe, Obinna E.; Falase, Ayodele O.; Adebayo, Saheed O.; Olunuga, Taiwo; Sliwa, Karen

2014-01-01

Background: Heart failure (HF) is a deadly, disabling and often costly syndrome world-wide. Unfortunately, there is a paucity of data describing its economic impact in sub Saharan Africa; a region in which the number of relatively younger cases will inevitably rise. Methods: Heath economic data were extracted from a prospective HF registry in a tertiary hospital situated in Abeokuta, southwest Nigeria. Outpatient and inpatient costs were computed from a representative cohort of 239 HF cases including personnel, diagnostic and treatment resources used for their management over a 12-month period. Indirect costs were also calculated. The annual cost per person was then calculated. Results: Mean age of the cohort was 58.0±15.1 years and 53.1% were men. The total computed cost of care of HF in Abeokuta was 76, 288,845 Nigerian Naira (US$508, 595) translating to 319,200 Naira (US$2,128 US Dollars) per patient per year. The total cost of in-patient care (46% of total health care expenditure) was estimated as 34,996,477 Naira (about 301,230 US dollars). This comprised of 17,899,977 Naira- 50.9% ($US114,600) and 17,806,500 naira −49.1%($US118,710) for direct and in-direct costs respectively. Out-patient cost was estimated as 41,292,368 Naira ($US 275,282). The relatively high cost of outpatient care was largely due to cost of transportation for monthly follow up visits. Payments were mostly made through out-of-pocket spending. Conclusion: The economic burden of HF in Nigeria is particularly high considering, the relatively young age of affected cases, a minimum wage of 18,000 Naira ($US120) per month and considerable component of out-of-pocket spending for those affected. Health reforms designed to mitigate the individual to societal burden imposed by the syndrome are required. PMID:25415310

Economic burden of heart failure: investigating outpatient and inpatient costs in Abeokuta, Southwest Nigeria.

PubMed

Ogah, Okechukwu S; Stewart, Simon; Onwujekwe, Obinna E; Falase, Ayodele O; Adebayo, Saheed O; Olunuga, Taiwo; Sliwa, Karen

2014-01-01

Heart failure (HF) is a deadly, disabling and often costly syndrome world-wide. Unfortunately, there is a paucity of data describing its economic impact in sub Saharan Africa; a region in which the number of relatively younger cases will inevitably rise. Heath economic data were extracted from a prospective HF registry in a tertiary hospital situated in Abeokuta, southwest Nigeria. Outpatient and inpatient costs were computed from a representative cohort of 239 HF cases including personnel, diagnostic and treatment resources used for their management over a 12-month period. Indirect costs were also calculated. The annual cost per person was then calculated. Mean age of the cohort was 58.0 ± 15.1 years and 53.1% were men. The total computed cost of care of HF in Abeokuta was 76, 288,845 Nigerian Naira (US$508, 595) translating to 319,200 Naira (US$2,128 US Dollars) per patient per year. The total cost of in-patient care (46% of total health care expenditure) was estimated as 34,996,477 Naira (about 301,230 US dollars). This comprised of 17,899,977 Naira- 50.9% ($US114,600) and 17,806,500 naira -49.1%($US118,710) for direct and in-direct costs respectively. Out-patient cost was estimated as 41,292,368 Naira ($US 275,282). The relatively high cost of outpatient care was largely due to cost of transportation for monthly follow up visits. Payments were mostly made through out-of-pocket spending. The economic burden of HF in Nigeria is particularly high considering, the relatively young age of affected cases, a minimum wage of 18,000 Naira ($US120) per month and considerable component of out-of-pocket spending for those affected. Health reforms designed to mitigate the individual to societal burden imposed by the syndrome are required.

Why projects often fail even with high cost contingencies

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

Kujawski, Edouard

2002-02-28

In this note we assume that the individual risks have been adequately quantified and the total project cost contingency adequately computed to ensure an agreed-to probability or confidence level that the total project cost estimate will not be exceeded. But even projects that implement such a process are likely to result in significant cost overruns and/or project failure if the project manager allocates the contingencies to the individual subsystems. The intuitive and mathematically valid solution is to maintain a project-wide contingency and to distribute it to the individual risks on an as-needed basis. Such an approach ensures cost-efficient risk management,more » and projects that implement it are more likely to succeed and to cost less. We illustrate these ideas using a simplified project with two independent risks. The formulation can readily be extended to multiple risks.« less

Costs associated with implementation of computer-assisted clinical decision support system for antenatal and delivery care: case study of Kassena-Nankana district of northern Ghana.

PubMed

Dalaba, Maxwell Ayindenaba; Akweongo, Patricia; Williams, John; Saronga, Happiness Pius; Tonchev, Pencho; Sauerborn, Rainer; Mensah, Nathan; Blank, Antje; Kaltschmidt, Jens; Loukanova, Svetla

2014-01-01

This study analyzed cost of implementing computer-assisted Clinical Decision Support System (CDSS) in selected health care centres in Ghana. A descriptive cross sectional study was conducted in the Kassena-Nankana district (KND). CDSS was deployed in selected health centres in KND as an intervention to manage patients attending antenatal clinics and the labour ward. The CDSS users were mainly nurses who were trained. Activities and associated costs involved in the implementation of CDSS (pre-intervention and intervention) were collected for the period between 2009-2013 from the provider perspective. The ingredients approach was used for the cost analysis. Costs were grouped into personnel, trainings, overheads (recurrent costs) and equipment costs (capital cost). We calculated cost without annualizing capital cost to represent financial cost and cost with annualizing capital costs to represent economic cost. Twenty-two trained CDSS users (at least 2 users per health centre) participated in the study. Between April 2012 and March 2013, users managed 5,595 antenatal clients and 872 labour clients using the CDSS. We observed a decrease in the proportion of complications during delivery (pre-intervention 10.74% versus post-intervention 9.64%) and a reduction in the number of maternal deaths (pre-intervention 4 deaths versus post-intervention 1 death). The overall financial cost of CDSS implementation was US$23,316, approximately US$1,060 per CDSS user trained. Of the total cost of implementation, 48% (US$11,272) was pre-intervention cost and intervention cost was 52% (US$12,044). Equipment costs accounted for the largest proportion of financial cost: 34% (US$7,917). When economic cost was considered, total cost of implementation was US$17,128-lower than the financial cost by 26.5%. The study provides useful information in the implementation of CDSS at health facilities to enhance health workers' adherence to practice guidelines and taking accurate decisions to improve maternal health care.

Parallel spatial direct numerical simulations on the Intel iPSC/860 hypercube

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Joslin, Ronald D.; Zubair, Mohammad

1993-01-01

The implementation and performance of a parallel spatial direct numerical simulation (PSDNS) approach on the Intel iPSC/860 hypercube is documented. The direct numerical simulation approach is used to compute spatially evolving disturbances associated with the laminar-to-turbulent transition in boundary-layer flows. The feasibility of using the PSDNS on the hypercube to perform transition studies is examined. The results indicate that the direct numerical simulation approach can effectively be parallelized on a distributed-memory parallel machine. By increasing the number of processors nearly ideal linear speedups are achieved with nonoptimized routines; slower than linear speedups are achieved with optimized (machine dependent library) routines. This slower than linear speedup results because the Fast Fourier Transform (FFT) routine dominates the computational cost and because the routine indicates less than ideal speedups. However with the machine-dependent routines the total computational cost decreases by a factor of 4 to 5 compared with standard FORTRAN routines. The computational cost increases linearly with spanwise wall-normal and streamwise grid refinements. The hypercube with 32 processors was estimated to require approximately twice the amount of Cray supercomputer single processor time to complete a comparable simulation; however it is estimated that a subgrid-scale model which reduces the required number of grid points and becomes a large-eddy simulation (PSLES) would reduce the computational cost and memory requirements by a factor of 10 over the PSDNS. This PSLES implementation would enable transition simulations on the hypercube at a reasonable computational cost.

Is a computer-assisted design and computer-assisted manufacturing method for mandibular reconstruction economically viable?

PubMed

Tarsitano, Achille; Battaglia, Salvatore; Crimi, Salvatore; Ciocca, Leonardo; Scotti, Roberto; Marchetti, Claudio

2016-07-01

The design and manufacture of patient-specific mandibular reconstruction plates, particularly in combination with cutting guides, has created many new opportunities for the planning and implementation of mandibular reconstruction. Although this surgical method is being used more widely and the outcomes appear to be improved, the question of the additional cost has to be discussed. To evaluate the cost generated by the management of this technology, we studied a cohort of patients treated for mandibular neoplasms. The population was divided into two groups of 20 patients each who were undergoing a 'traditional' freehand mandibular reconstruction or a computer-aided design/computer-aided manufacturing (CAD-CAM) mandibular reconstruction. Data concerning operation time, complications, and days of hospitalisation were used to evaluate costs related to the management of these patients. The mean operating time for the CAD-CAM group was 435 min, whereas that for the freehand group was 550.5 min. The total difference in terms of average time gain was 115.5 min. No microvascular complication occurred in the CAD-CAM group; two complications (10%) were observed in patients undergoing freehand reconstructions. The mean overall lengths of hospital stay were 13.8 days for the CAD-CAM group and 17 days for the freehand group. Finally, considering that the institutional cost per minute of theatre time is €30, the money saved as a result of the time gained was €3,450. This cost corresponds approximately to the total price of the CAD-CAM surgery. In conclusion, we believe that CAD-CAM technology for mandibular reconstruction will become a widely used reconstructive method and that its cost will be covered by gains in terms of surgical time, quality of reconstruction, and reduced complications. Copyright © 2016 European Association for Cranio-Maxillo-Facial Surgery. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Feasibility study of an Integrated Program for Aerospace vehicle Design (IPAD). Volume 1A: Summary

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Miller, R. E., Jr.; Redhed, D. D.; Kawaguchi, A. S.; Hansen, S. D.; Southall, J. W.

1973-01-01

IPAD was defined as a total system oriented to the product design process. This total system was designed to recognize the product design process, individuals and their design process tasks, and the computer-based IPAD System to aid product design. Principal elements of the IPAD System include the host computer and its interactive system software, new executive and data management software, and an open-ended IPAD library of technical programs to match the intended product design process. The basic goal of the IPAD total system is to increase the productivity of the product design organization. Increases in individual productivity were feasible through automation and computer support of routine information handling. Such proven automation can directly decrease cost and flowtime in the product design process.

A Stochastic Total Least Squares Solution of Adaptive Filtering Problem

PubMed Central

Ahmad, Noor Atinah

2014-01-01

An efficient and computationally linear algorithm is derived for total least squares solution of adaptive filtering problem, when both input and output signals are contaminated by noise. The proposed total least mean squares (TLMS) algorithm is designed by recursively computing an optimal solution of adaptive TLS problem by minimizing instantaneous value of weighted cost function. Convergence analysis of the algorithm is given to show the global convergence of the proposed algorithm, provided that the stepsize parameter is appropriately chosen. The TLMS algorithm is computationally simpler than the other TLS algorithms and demonstrates a better performance as compared with the least mean square (LMS) and normalized least mean square (NLMS) algorithms. It provides minimum mean square deviation by exhibiting better convergence in misalignment for unknown system identification under noisy inputs. PMID:24688412

Brief report: a cost analysis of neuraxial anesthesia to facilitate external cephalic version for breech fetal presentation.

PubMed

Carvalho, Brendan; Tan, Jonathan M; Macario, Alex; El-Sayed, Yasser Y; Sultan, Pervez

2013-07-01

In this study, we sought to determine whether neuraxial anesthesia to facilitate external cephalic version (ECV) increased delivery costs for breech fetal presentation. Using a computer cost model, which considers possible outcomes and probability uncertainties at the same time, we estimated total expected delivery costs for breech presentation managed by a trial of ECV with and without neuraxial anesthesia. From published studies, the average probability of successful ECV with neuraxial anesthesia was 60% (with individual studies ranging from 44% to 87%) compared with 38% (with individual studies ranging from 31% to 58%) without neuraxial anesthesia. The mean expected total delivery costs, including the cost of attempting/performing ECV with anesthesia, equaled $8931 (2.5th-97.5th percentile prediction interval $8541-$9252). The cost was $9207 (2.5th-97.5th percentile prediction interval $8896-$9419) if ECV was attempted/performed without anesthesia. The expected mean incremental difference between the total cost of delivery that includes ECV with anesthesia and ECV without anesthesia was $-276 (2.5th-97.5th percentile prediction interval $-720 to $112). The total cost of delivery in women with breech presentation may be decreased (up to $720) or increased (up to $112) if ECV is attempted/performed with neuraxial anesthesia compared with ECV without neuraxial anesthesia. Increased ECV success with neuraxial anesthesia and the subsequent reduction in breech cesarean delivery rate offset the costs of providing anesthesia to facilitate ECV.

Optimizing conjunctive use of surface water and groundwater resources with stochastic dynamic programming

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Davidsen, Claus; Liu, Suxia; Mo, Xingguo; Rosbjerg, Dan; Bauer-Gottwein, Peter

2014-05-01

Optimal management of conjunctive use of surface water and groundwater has been attempted with different algorithms in the literature. In this study, a hydro-economic modelling approach to optimize conjunctive use of scarce surface water and groundwater resources under uncertainty is presented. A stochastic dynamic programming (SDP) approach is used to minimize the basin-wide total costs arising from water allocations and water curtailments. Dynamic allocation problems with inclusion of groundwater resources proved to be more complex to solve with SDP than pure surface water allocation problems due to head-dependent pumping costs. These dynamic pumping costs strongly affect the total costs and can lead to non-convexity of the future cost function. The water user groups (agriculture, industry, domestic) are characterized by inelastic demands and fixed water allocation and water supply curtailment costs. As in traditional SDP approaches, one step-ahead sub-problems are solved to find the optimal management at any time knowing the inflow scenario and reservoir/aquifer storage levels. These non-linear sub-problems are solved using a genetic algorithm (GA) that minimizes the sum of the immediate and future costs for given surface water reservoir and groundwater aquifer end storages. The immediate cost is found by solving a simple linear allocation sub-problem, and the future costs are assessed by interpolation in the total cost matrix from the following time step. Total costs for all stages, reservoir states, and inflow scenarios are used as future costs to drive a forward moving simulation under uncertain water availability. The use of a GA to solve the sub-problems is computationally more costly than a traditional SDP approach with linearly interpolated future costs. However, in a two-reservoir system the future cost function would have to be represented by a set of planes, and strict convexity in both the surface water and groundwater dimension cannot be maintained. The optimization framework based on the GA is still computationally feasible and represents a clean and customizable method. The method has been applied to the Ziya River basin, China. The basin is located on the North China Plain and is subject to severe water scarcity, which includes surface water droughts and groundwater over-pumping. The head-dependent groundwater pumping costs will enable assessment of the long-term effects of increased electricity prices on the groundwater pumping. The coupled optimization framework is used to assess realistic alternative development scenarios for the basin. In particular the potential for using electricity pricing policies to reach sustainable groundwater pumping is investigated.

Private Cost of Education: A Comparative Study of Distance and Campus-Based University Students in Nigeria

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Olakulehin, Felix K.; Panda, Santosh K.

2011-01-01

This paper examines the comparative private costs of distance and conventional (classroom-based) university students in Nigeria. A total of 200 subjects comprising students registered for the B.Sc. Computer Science and B.A. English Studies programmes at the University of Lagos, Nigeria and the National Open University of Nigeria (NOUN) were…

The cost of lost productivity due to premature cancer-related mortality: an economic measure of the cancer burden.

PubMed

Hanly, Paul A; Sharp, Linda

2014-03-26

Most measures of the cancer burden take a public health perspective. Cancer also has a significant economic impact on society. To assess this economic burden, we estimated years of potential productive life lost (YPPLL) and costs of lost productivity due to premature cancer-related mortality in Ireland. All cancers combined and the 10 sites accounting for most deaths in men and in women were considered. To compute YPPLL, deaths in 5-year age-bands between 15 and 64 years were multiplied by average working-life expectancy. Valuation of costs, using the human capital approach, involved multiplying YPPLL by age-and-gender specific gross wages, and adjusting for unemployment and workforce participation. Sensitivity analyses were conducted around retirement age and wage growth, labour force participation, employment and discount rates, and to explore the impact of including household production and caring costs. Costs were expressed in €2009. Total YPPLL was lower in men than women (men = 10,873; women = 12,119). Premature cancer-related mortality costs were higher in men (men: total cost = €332 million, cost/death = €290,172, cost/YPPLL = €30,558; women: total cost = €177 million, cost/death = €159,959, cost/YPPLL = €14,628). Lung cancer had the highest premature mortality cost (€84.0 million; 16.5% of total costs), followed by cancers of the colorectum (€49.6 million; 9.7%), breast (€49.4 million; 9.7%) and brain & CNS (€42.4 million: 8.3%). The total economic cost of premature cancer-related mortality in Ireland amounted to €509.5 million or 0.3% of gross domestic product. An increase of one year in the retirement age increased the total all-cancer premature mortality cost by 9.9% for men and 5.9% for women. The inclusion of household production and caring costs increased the total cost to €945.7 million. Lost productivity costs due to cancer-related premature mortality are significant. The higher premature mortality cost in males than females reflects higher wages and rates of workforce participation. Productivity costs provide an alternative perspective on the cancer burden on society and may inform cancer control policy decisions.

Cost and resource utilization associated with use of computed tomography to evaluate chest pain in the emergency department: the Rule Out Myocardial Infarction using Computer Assisted Tomography (ROMICAT) study.

PubMed

Hulten, Edward; Goehler, Alexander; Bittencourt, Marcio Sommer; Bamberg, Fabian; Schlett, Christopher L; Truong, Quynh A; Nichols, John; Nasir, Khurram; Rogers, Ian S; Gazelle, Scott G; Nagurney, John T; Hoffmann, Udo; Blankstein, Ron

2013-09-01

Coronary computed tomographic angiography (cCTA) allows rapid, noninvasive exclusion of obstructive coronary artery disease (CAD). However, concern exists whether implementation of cCTA in the assessment of patients presenting to the emergency department with acute chest pain will lead to increased downstream testing and costs compared with alternative strategies. Our aim was to compare observed actual costs of usual care (UC) with projected costs of a strategy including early cCTA in the evaluation of patients with acute chest pain in the Rule Out Myocardial Infarction Using Computer Assisted Tomography I (ROMICAT I) study. We compared cost and hospital length of stay of UC observed among 368 patients enrolled in the ROMICAT I study with projected costs of management based on cCTA. Costs of UC were determined by an electronic cost accounting system. Notably, UC was not influenced by cCTA results because patients and caregivers were blinded to the cCTA results. Costs after early implementation of cCTA were estimated assuming changes in management based on cCTA findings of the presence and severity of CAD. Sensitivity analysis was used to test the influence of key variables on both outcomes and costs. We determined that in comparison with UC, cCTA-guided triage, whereby patients with no CAD are discharged, could reduce total hospital costs by 23% (P<0.001). However, when the prevalence of obstructive CAD increases, index hospitalization cost increases such that when the prevalence of ≥ 50% stenosis is >28% to 33%, the use of cCTA becomes more costly than UC. cCTA may be a cost-saving tool in acute chest pain populations that have a prevalence of potentially obstructive CAD <30%. However, increased cost would be anticipated in populations with higher prevalence of disease.

The Cost-Effectiveness of Dual Mobility Implants for Primary Total Hip Arthroplasty: A Computer-Based Cost-Utility Model.

PubMed

Barlow, Brian T; McLawhorn, Alexander S; Westrich, Geoffrey H

2017-05-03

Dislocation remains a clinically important problem following primary total hip arthroplasty, and it is a common reason for revision total hip arthroplasty. Dual mobility (DM) implants decrease the risk of dislocation but can be more expensive than conventional implants and have idiosyncratic failure mechanisms. The purpose of this study was to investigate the cost-effectiveness of DM implants compared with conventional bearings for primary total hip arthroplasty. Markov model analysis was conducted from the societal perspective with use of direct and indirect costs. Costs, expressed in 2013 U.S. dollars, were derived from the literature, the National Inpatient Sample, and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. Effectiveness was expressed in quality-adjusted life years (QALYs). The model was populated with health state utilities and state transition probabilities derived from previously published literature. The analysis was performed for a patient's lifetime, and costs and effectiveness were discounted at 3% annually. The principal outcome was the incremental cost-effectiveness ratio (ICER), with a willingness-to-pay threshold of $100,000/QALY. Sensitivity analyses were performed to explore relevant uncertainty. In the base case, DM total hip arthroplasty showed absolute dominance over conventional total hip arthroplasty, with lower accrued costs ($39,008 versus $40,031 U.S. dollars) and higher accrued utility (13.18 versus 13.13 QALYs) indicating cost-savings. DM total hip arthroplasty ceased being cost-saving when its implant costs exceeded those of conventional total hip arthroplasty by $1,023, and the cost-effectiveness threshold for DM implants was $5,287 greater than that for conventional implants. DM was not cost-effective when the annualized incremental probability of revision from any unforeseen failure mechanism or mechanisms exceeded 0.29%. The probability of intraprosthetic dislocation exerted the most influence on model results. This model determined that, compared with conventional bearings, DM implants can be cost-saving for routine primary total hip arthroplasty, from the societal perspective, if newer-generation DM implants meet specific economic and clinical benchmarks. The differences between these thresholds and the performance of other contemporary bearings were frequently quite narrow. The results have potential application to the postmarket surveillance of newer-generation DM components. Economic and decision analysis Level III. See Instructions for Authors for a complete description of levels of evidence.

A cost-construction model to assess the total cost of an anesthesiology residency program.

PubMed

Franzini, L; Berry, J M

1999-01-01

Although the total costs of graduate medical education are difficult to quantify, this information may be of great importance for health policy and planning over the next decade. This study describes the total costs associated with the residency program at the University of Texas--Houston Department of Anesthesiology during the 1996-1997 academic year. The authors used cost-construction methodology, which computes the cost of teaching from information on program description, resident enrollment, faculty and resident salaries and benefits, and overhead. Surveys of faculty and residents were conducted to determine the time spent in teaching activities; access to institutional and departmental financial records was obtained to quantify associated costs. The model was then developed and examined for a range of assumptions concerning resident productivity, replacement costs, and the cost allocation of activities jointly producing clinical care and education. The cost of resident training (cost of didactic teaching, direct clinical supervision, teaching-related preparation and administration, plus the support of the teaching program) was estimated at $75,070 per resident per year. This cost was less than the estimated replacement value of the teaching and clinical services provided by residents, $103,436 per resident per year. Sensitivity analysis, with different assumptions regarding resident replacement cost and reimbursement rates, varied the cost estimates but generally identified the anesthesiology residency program as a financial asset. In most scenarios, the value of the teaching and clinical services provided by residents exceeded the cost of the resources used in the educational program.

Reliability and cost analysis methods

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Suich, Ronald C.

1991-01-01

In the design phase of a system, how does a design engineer or manager choose between a subsystem with .990 reliability and a more costly subsystem with .995 reliability? When is the increased cost justified? High reliability is not necessarily an end in itself but may be desirable in order to reduce the expected cost due to subsystem failure. However, this may not be the wisest use of funds since the expected cost due to subsystem failure is not the only cost involved. The subsystem itself may be very costly. We should not consider either the cost of the subsystem or the expected cost due to subsystem failure separately but should minimize the total of the two costs, i.e., the total of the cost of the subsystem plus the expected cost due to subsystem failure. This final report discusses the Combined Analysis of Reliability, Redundancy, and Cost (CARRAC) methods which were developed under Grant Number NAG 3-1100 from the NASA Lewis Research Center. CARRAC methods and a CARRAC computer program employ five models which can be used to cover a wide range of problems. The models contain an option which can include repair of failed modules.

The thermodynamic efficiency of computations made in cells across the range of life

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kempes, Christopher P.; Wolpert, David; Cohen, Zachary; Pérez-Mercader, Juan

2017-11-01

Biological organisms must perform computation as they grow, reproduce and evolve. Moreover, ever since Landauer's bound was proposed, it has been known that all computation has some thermodynamic cost-and that the same computation can be achieved with greater or smaller thermodynamic cost depending on how it is implemented. Accordingly an important issue concerning the evolution of life is assessing the thermodynamic efficiency of the computations performed by organisms. This issue is interesting both from the perspective of how close life has come to maximally efficient computation (presumably under the pressure of natural selection), and from the practical perspective of what efficiencies we might hope that engineered biological computers might achieve, especially in comparison with current computational systems. Here we show that the computational efficiency of translation, defined as free energy expended per amino acid operation, outperforms the best supercomputers by several orders of magnitude, and is only about an order of magnitude worse than the Landauer bound. However, this efficiency depends strongly on the size and architecture of the cell in question. In particular, we show that the useful efficiency of an amino acid operation, defined as the bulk energy per amino acid polymerization, decreases for increasing bacterial size and converges to the polymerization cost of the ribosome. This cost of the largest bacteria does not change in cells as we progress through the major evolutionary shifts to both single- and multicellular eukaryotes. However, the rates of total computation per unit mass are non-monotonic in bacteria with increasing cell size, and also change across different biological architectures, including the shift from unicellular to multicellular eukaryotes. This article is part of the themed issue 'Reconceptualizing the origins of life'.

Design-Tradeoff Model For Space Station

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Chamberlain, Robert G.; Smith, Jeffrey L.; Borden, Chester S.; Deshpande, Govind K.; Fox, George; Duquette, William H.; Dilullo, Larry A.; Seeley, Larry; Shishko, Robert

1990-01-01

System Design Tradeoff Model (SDTM) computer program produces information which helps to enforce consistency of design objectives throughout system. Mathematical model of set of possible designs for Space Station Freedom. Program finds particular design enabling station to provide specified amounts of resources to users at lowest total (or life-cycle) cost. Compares alternative design concepts by changing set of possible designs, while holding specified services to users constant, and then comparing costs. Finally, both costs and services varied simultaneously when comparing different designs. Written in Turbo C 2.0.

Value Engineering: An Application to Computer Software

DTIC Science & Technology

1995-06-01

Ref. 4: P.2081 [Parentheses added] Figure S shows the cost function C(x) graphed with the Total Value function TV(x). It can be seen that for any...to be meaningful and ae-c-nrarp far tIha use V4a 4& trvite #nr- all nrnswn4_v%# s * 4 nna 33 since cost structures for each sotware de....o..n. project...maintainability quality characteristics due to longterm considerations affecting life-cycle costs .(0) S . VE applications provide alternative

The Cost-Effectiveness of Surgical Treatment of Medial Unicompartmental Knee Osteoarthritis in Younger Patients

PubMed Central

Konopka, Joseph F.; Gomoll, Andreas H.; Thornhill, Thomas S.; Katz, Jeffrey N.; Losina, Elena

2015-01-01

Background: Surgical options for the management of medial compartment osteoarthritis of the varus knee include high tibial osteotomy, unicompartmental knee arthroplasty, and total knee arthroplasty. We sought to determine the cost-effectiveness of high tibial osteotomy and unicompartmental knee arthroplasty as alternatives to total knee arthroplasty for patients fifty to sixty years of age. Methods: We built a probabilistic state-transition computer model with health states defined by pain, postoperative complications, and subsequent surgical procedures. We estimated transition probabilities from published literature. Costs were determined from Medicare reimbursement schedules. Health outcomes were measured in quality-adjusted life-years (QALYs). We conducted analyses over patients’ lifetimes from the societal perspective, with health and cost outcomes discounted by 3% annually. We used probabilistic sensitivity analyses to account for uncertainty in data inputs. Results: The estimated discounted QALYs were 14.62, 14.63, and 14.64 for high tibial osteotomy, unicompartmental knee arthroplasty, and total knee arthroplasty, respectively. Discounted total direct medical costs were $20,436 for high tibial osteotomy, $24,637 for unicompartmental knee arthroplasty, and $24,761 for total knee arthroplasty (in 2012 U.S. dollars). The incremental cost-effectiveness ratio (ICER) was $231,900 per QALY for total knee arthroplasty and $420,100 per QALY for unicompartmental knee arthroplasty. Probabilistic sensitivity analyses showed that, at a willingness-to-pay (WTP) threshold of $50,000 per QALY, high tibial osteotomy was cost-effective 57% of the time; total knee arthroplasty, 24%; and unicompartmental knee arthroplasty, 19%. At a WTP threshold of $100,000 per QALY, high tibial osteotomy was cost-effective 43% of time; total knee arthroplasty, 31%; and unicompartmental knee arthroplasty, 26%. Conclusions: In fifty to sixty-year-old patients with medial unicompartmental knee osteoarthritis, high tibial osteotomy is an attractive option compared with unicompartmental knee arthroplasty and total knee arthroplasty. This finding supports greater utilization of high tibial osteotomy for these patients. The cost-effectiveness of high tibial osteotomy and of unicompartmental knee arthroplasty depend on rates of conversion to total knee arthroplasty and the clinical outcomes of the conversions. Level of Evidence: Economic Level II. See Instructions for Authors for a complete description of levels of evidence. PMID:25995491

Fuels and fire in land-management planning: Part 3. Costs and losses for management options.

Treesearch

Wayne G. Maxwell; David V. Sandberg; Franklin R. Ward

1983-01-01

An approach is illustrated for computing expected costs of fire protection; fuel treatment; fire suppression; damage values; and percent of area lost to wildfire for a management or rotation cycle. Input is derived from Part 1, a method for collecting and classifying the total fuel complex, and Part 2, a method for appraising and rating probable fire behavior. This...

78 FR 12381 - Self-Regulatory Organizations; New York Stock Exchange LLC; Notice of Filing of Proposed Rule...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2013-02-22

... computer technology that permitted more efficient, and increasingly paperless, distribution of proxy... requires ongoing technology support, services and maintenance, and is a significant part of the total cost...

Parallel conjugate gradient algorithms for manipulator dynamic simulation

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Fijany, Amir; Scheld, Robert E.

1989-01-01

Parallel conjugate gradient algorithms for the computation of multibody dynamics are developed for the specialized case of a robot manipulator. For an n-dimensional positive-definite linear system, the Classical Conjugate Gradient (CCG) algorithms are guaranteed to converge in n iterations, each with a computation cost of O(n); this leads to a total computational cost of O(n sq) on a serial processor. A conjugate gradient algorithms is presented that provide greater efficiency using a preconditioner, which reduces the number of iterations required, and by exploiting parallelism, which reduces the cost of each iteration. Two Preconditioned Conjugate Gradient (PCG) algorithms are proposed which respectively use a diagonal and a tridiagonal matrix, composed of the diagonal and tridiagonal elements of the mass matrix, as preconditioners. Parallel algorithms are developed to compute the preconditioners and their inversions in O(log sub 2 n) steps using n processors. A parallel algorithm is also presented which, on the same architecture, achieves the computational time of O(log sub 2 n) for each iteration. Simulation results for a seven degree-of-freedom manipulator are presented. Variants of the proposed algorithms are also developed which can be efficiently implemented on the Robot Mathematics Processor (RMP).

Cost analysis of Human Papillomavirus-related cervical diseases and genital warts in Swaziland.

PubMed

Ginindza, Themba G; Sartorius, Benn; Dlamini, Xolisile; Östensson, Ellinor

2017-01-01

Human papillomavirus (HPV) has proven to be the cause of several severe clinical conditions on the cervix, vulva, vagina, anus, oropharynx and penis. Several studies have assessed the costs of cervical lesions, cervical cancer (CC), and genital warts. However, few have been done in Africa and none in Swaziland. Cost analysis is critical in providing useful information for economic evaluations to guide policymakers concerned with the allocation of resources in order to reduce the disease burden. A prevalence-based cost of illness (COI) methodology was used to investigate the economic burden of HPV-related diseases. We used a top-down approach for the cost associated with hospital care and a bottom-up approach to estimate the cost associated with outpatient and primary care. The current study was conducted from a provider perspective since the state bears the majority of the costs of screening and treatment in Swaziland. All identifiable direct medical costs were considered for cervical lesions, cervical cancer and genital warts, which were primary diagnoses during 2015. A mix of bottom up micro-costing ingredients approach and top-down approaches was used to collect data on costs. All costs were computed at the price level of 2015 and converted to dollars ($). The total annual estimated direct medical cost associated with screening, managing and treating cervical lesions, CC and genital warts in Swaziland was $16 million. The largest cost in the analysis was estimated for treatment of high-grade cervical lesions and cervical cancer representing 80% of the total cost ($12.6 million). Costs for screening only represented 5% of the total cost ($0.9 million). Treatment of genital warts represented 6% of the total cost ($1million). According to the cost estimations in this study, the economic burden of HPV-related cervical diseases and genital warts represents a major public health issue in Swaziland. Prevention of HPV infection with a national HPV immunization programme for pre-adolescent girls would prevent the majority of CC related deaths and associated costs.

Costs Associated with Implementation of Computer-Assisted Clinical Decision Support System for Antenatal and Delivery Care: Case Study of Kassena-Nankana District of Northern Ghana

PubMed Central

Dalaba, Maxwell Ayindenaba; Akweongo, Patricia; Williams, John; Saronga, Happiness Pius; Tonchev, Pencho; Sauerborn, Rainer; Mensah, Nathan; Blank, Antje; Kaltschmidt, Jens; Loukanova, Svetla

2014-01-01

Objective This study analyzed cost of implementing computer-assisted Clinical Decision Support System (CDSS) in selected health care centres in Ghana. Methods A descriptive cross sectional study was conducted in the Kassena-Nankana district (KND). CDSS was deployed in selected health centres in KND as an intervention to manage patients attending antenatal clinics and the labour ward. The CDSS users were mainly nurses who were trained. Activities and associated costs involved in the implementation of CDSS (pre-intervention and intervention) were collected for the period between 2009–2013 from the provider perspective. The ingredients approach was used for the cost analysis. Costs were grouped into personnel, trainings, overheads (recurrent costs) and equipment costs (capital cost). We calculated cost without annualizing capital cost to represent financial cost and cost with annualizing capital costs to represent economic cost. Results Twenty-two trained CDSS users (at least 2 users per health centre) participated in the study. Between April 2012 and March 2013, users managed 5,595 antenatal clients and 872 labour clients using the CDSS. We observed a decrease in the proportion of complications during delivery (pre-intervention 10.74% versus post-intervention 9.64%) and a reduction in the number of maternal deaths (pre-intervention 4 deaths versus post-intervention 1 death). The overall financial cost of CDSS implementation was US$23,316, approximately US$1,060 per CDSS user trained. Of the total cost of implementation, 48% (US$11,272) was pre-intervention cost and intervention cost was 52% (US$12,044). Equipment costs accounted for the largest proportion of financial cost: 34% (US$7,917). When economic cost was considered, total cost of implementation was US$17,128–lower than the financial cost by 26.5%. Conclusions The study provides useful information in the implementation of CDSS at health facilities to enhance health workers' adherence to practice guidelines and taking accurate decisions to improve maternal health care. PMID:25180831

Time-Driven Activity-Based Costing: A Comparative Cost Analysis of Whole-Breast Radiotherapy Versus Balloon-Based Brachytherapy in the Management of Early-Stage Breast Cancer.

PubMed

Schutzer, Matthew E; Arthur, Douglas W; Anscher, Mitchell S

2016-05-01

Value in health care is defined as outcomes achieved per dollar spent, and understanding cost is critical to delivering high-value care. Traditional costing methods reflect charges rather than fundamental costs to provide a service. The more rigorous method of time-driven activity-based costing was used to compare cost between whole-breast radiotherapy (WBRT) and accelerated partial-breast irradiation (APBI) using balloon-based brachytherapy. For WBRT (25 fractions with five-fraction boost) and APBI (10 fractions twice daily), process maps were created outlining each activity from consultation to post-treatment follow up. Through staff interviews, time estimates were obtained for each activity. The capacity cost rates (CCR), defined as cost per minute, were calculated for personnel, equipment, and physical space. Total cost was calculated by multiplying the time required of each resource by its CCR. This was then summed and combined with cost of consumable materials. The total cost for WBRT was $5,333 and comprised 56% personnel costs and 44% space/equipment costs. For APBI, the total cost was $6,941 (30% higher than WBRT) and comprised 51% personnel costs, 6% space/equipment costs, and 43% consumable materials costs. The attending physician had the highest CCR of all personnel ($4.28/min), and APBI required 24% more attending time than WBRT. The most expensive activity for APBI was balloon placement and for WBRT was computed tomography simulation. APBI cost more than WBRT when using the dose/fractionation schemes analyzed. Future research should use time-driven activity-based costing to better understand cost with the aim of reducing expenditure and defining bundled payments. Copyright © 2016 by American Society of Clinical Oncology.

Analysis of contemporary HIV/AIDS health care costs in Germany

PubMed Central

Treskova, Marina; Kuhlmann, Alexander; Bogner, Johannes; Hower, Martin; Heiken, Hans; Stellbrink, Hans-Jürgen; Mahlich, Jörg; von der Schulenburg, Johann-Matthias Graf; Stoll, Matthias

2016-01-01

Abstract To analyze contemporary costs of HIV health care and the cost distribution across lines of combination antiretroviral therapy (cART). To identify variations in expenditures with patient characteristics and to identify main cost determinants. To compute cost ratios between patients with varying characteristics. Empirical data on costs are collected in Germany within a 2-year prospective observational noninterventional multicenter study. The database contains information for 1154 HIV-infected patients from 8 medical centers. Means and standard deviations of the total costs are estimated for each cost fraction and across cART lines and regimens. The costs are regressed against various patient characteristics using a generalized linear model. Relative costs are calculated using the resultant coefficients. The average annual total costs (SD) per patient are €22,231.03 (8786.13) with a maximum of €83,970. cART medication is the major cost fraction (83.8%) with a mean of €18,688.62 (5289.48). The major cost-driving factors are cART regimen, CD4-T cell count, cART drug resistance, and concomitant diseases. Viral load, pathology tests, and demographics have no significant impact. Standard non-nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitor-based regimens induce 28% lower total costs compared with standard PI/r regimens. Resistance to 3 or more antiretroviral classes induces a significant increase in costs. HIV treatment in Germany continues to be expensive. Majority of costs are attributable to cART. Main cost determinants are CD4-T cells count, comorbidity, genotypic antiviral resistance, and therapy regimen. Combinations of characteristics associated with higher expenditures enhance the increasing effect on the costs and induce high cost cases. PMID:27367993

Physician self-referral for imaging and the cost of chronic care for Medicare beneficiaries.

PubMed

Hughes, Danny R; Sunshine, Jonathan H; Bhargavan, Mythreyi; Forman, Howard

2011-09-01

As the cost of both chronic care and diagnostic imaging continue to rise, it is important to consider methods of cost containment in these areas. Therefore, it seems important to study the relationship between self-referral for imaging and the cost of care of chronic illnesses. Previous studies, mostly of acute illnesses, have found self-referral increases utilization and, thus, probably imaging costs. To evaluate the relationship between physician self-referral for imaging and the cost of episodes of chronic care. Using Medicare's 5% Research Identifiable Files for 2004 to 2007, episodes of care were constructed for 32 broad chronic conditions using the Symmetry Episode Treatment Grouper. Using multivariate regression, we evaluated the association between whether the treating physician self-referred for imaging and total episode cost, episode imaging cost, and episode nonimaging cost. Analyses were controlled for patient characteristics (eg, age and general health status), the condition's severity, and treating physician specialty. Self-referral in imaging was significantly (P < 0.01) associated with total episode costs in 41 of the 76 medical condition and imaging modality (computed tomography, magnetic resonance imaging, etc.) combinations studied. Total costs were higher in 38 combinations and lower in 3. Even nonimaging costs were much more often significantly higher (in 24 combinations) with self-referral than being lower (in 4 combinations). We find broad evidence that physician self-referral for imaging is associated with significantly and substantially higher chronic care costs. Unless self-referral has empirically demonstrable benefits, curbing self-referral may be an appropriate route to containing chronic care costs.

Controlling total spot power from holographic laser by superimposing a binary phase grating.

PubMed

Liu, Xiang; Zhang, Jian; Gan, Yu; Wu, Liying

2011-04-25

By superimposing a tunable binary phase grating with a conventional computer-generated hologram, the total power of multiple holographic 3D spots can be easily controlled by changing the phase depth of grating with high accuracy to a random power value for real-time optical manipulation without extra power loss. Simulation and experiment results indicate that a resolution of 0.002 can be achieved at a lower time cost for normalized total spot power.

Implementation of computer-based patient records in primary care: the societal health economic effects.

PubMed Central

Arias-Vimárlund, V.; Ljunggren, M.; Timpka, T.

1996-01-01

OBJECTIVE: Exploration of the societal health economic effects occurring during the first year after implementation of Computerised Patient Records (CPRs) at Primary Health Care (PHC) centres. DESIGN: Comparative case studies of practice processes and their consequences one year after CPR implementation, using the constant comparison method. Application of transaction-cost analyses at a societal level on the results. SETTING: Two urban PHC centres under a managed care contract in Ostergötland county, Sweden. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Central implementation issues. First-year societal direct normal costs, direct unexpected costs, and indirect costs. Societal benefits. RESULTS: The total societal effect of the CPR implementation was a cost of nearly 250,000 SEK (USD 37,000) per GP team. About 20% of the effect consisted of direct unexpected costs, accured from the reduction of practitioners' leisure time. The main issues in the implementation process were medical informatics knowledge and computer skills, adaptation of the human-computer interaction design to practice routines, and information access through the CPR. CONCLUSIONS: The societal costs exceed the benefits during the first year after CPR implementation at the observed PHC centres. Early investments in requirements engineering and staff training may increase the efficiency. Exploitation of the CPR for disease prevention and clinical quality improvement is necessary to defend the investment in societal terms. The exact calculation of societal costs requires further analysis of the affected groups' willingness to pay. PMID:8947717

15 CFR 295.25 - Special rule for the valuation of transfers between separately-owned joint venture members.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-01-01

... goods, including computer software, and services provided by the transferor related to the maintenance... non-Federal share of the total cost of the joint research and development program. (c) Definition. The...

15 CFR 295.25 - Special rule for the valuation of transfers between separately-owned joint venture members.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... goods, including computer software, and services provided by the transferor related to the maintenance... non-Federal share of the total cost of the joint research and development program. (c) Definition. The...

15 CFR 295.25 - Special rule for the valuation of transfers between separately-owned joint venture members.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-01-01

... goods, including computer software, and services provided by the transferor related to the maintenance... non-Federal share of the total cost of the joint research and development program. (c) Definition. The...

15 CFR 295.25 - Special rule for the valuation of transfers between separately-owned joint venture members.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-01-01

... goods, including computer software, and services provided by the transferor related to the maintenance... non-Federal share of the total cost of the joint research and development program. (c) Definition. The...

Distributed query plan generation using multiobjective genetic algorithm.

PubMed

Panicker, Shina; Kumar, T V Vijay

2014-01-01

A distributed query processing strategy, which is a key performance determinant in accessing distributed databases, aims to minimize the total query processing cost. One way to achieve this is by generating efficient distributed query plans that involve fewer sites for processing a query. In the case of distributed relational databases, the number of possible query plans increases exponentially with respect to the number of relations accessed by the query and the number of sites where these relations reside. Consequently, computing optimal distributed query plans becomes a complex problem. This distributed query plan generation (DQPG) problem has already been addressed using single objective genetic algorithm, where the objective is to minimize the total query processing cost comprising the local processing cost (LPC) and the site-to-site communication cost (CC). In this paper, this DQPG problem is formulated and solved as a biobjective optimization problem with the two objectives being minimize total LPC and minimize total CC. These objectives are simultaneously optimized using a multiobjective genetic algorithm NSGA-II. Experimental comparison of the proposed NSGA-II based DQPG algorithm with the single objective genetic algorithm shows that the former performs comparatively better and converges quickly towards optimal solutions for an observed crossover and mutation probability.

Distributed Query Plan Generation Using Multiobjective Genetic Algorithm

PubMed Central

Panicker, Shina; Vijay Kumar, T. V.

2014-01-01

A distributed query processing strategy, which is a key performance determinant in accessing distributed databases, aims to minimize the total query processing cost. One way to achieve this is by generating efficient distributed query plans that involve fewer sites for processing a query. In the case of distributed relational databases, the number of possible query plans increases exponentially with respect to the number of relations accessed by the query and the number of sites where these relations reside. Consequently, computing optimal distributed query plans becomes a complex problem. This distributed query plan generation (DQPG) problem has already been addressed using single objective genetic algorithm, where the objective is to minimize the total query processing cost comprising the local processing cost (LPC) and the site-to-site communication cost (CC). In this paper, this DQPG problem is formulated and solved as a biobjective optimization problem with the two objectives being minimize total LPC and minimize total CC. These objectives are simultaneously optimized using a multiobjective genetic algorithm NSGA-II. Experimental comparison of the proposed NSGA-II based DQPG algorithm with the single objective genetic algorithm shows that the former performs comparatively better and converges quickly towards optimal solutions for an observed crossover and mutation probability. PMID:24963513

Cost of treatment for breast cancer in central Vietnam

PubMed Central

Hoang Lan, Nguyen; Laohasiriwong, Wongsa; Stewart, John Frederick; Tung, Nguyen Dinh; Coyte, Peter C.

2013-01-01

Background In recent years, cases of breast cancer have been on the rise in Vietnam. To date, there has been no study on the financial burden of the disease. This study estimates the direct medical cost of a 5-year treatment course for women with primary breast cancer in central Vietnam. Methods Retrospective patient-level data from medical records at the Hue Central Hospital between 2001 and 2006 were analyzed. Cost analysis was conducted from the health care payers’ perspective. Various direct medical cost categories were computed for a 5-year treatment course for patients with breast cancer. Costs, in US dollars, discounted at a 3% rate, were converted to 2010 after adjusting for inflation. For each cost category, the mean, standard deviation, median, and cost range were estimated. Median regression was used to investigate the relationship between costs and the stage, age at diagnosis, and the health insurance coverage of the patients. Results The total direct medical cost for a 5-year treatment course for breast cancer in central Vietnam was estimated at $975 per patient (range: $11.7–$3,955). The initial treatment cost, particularly the cost of chemotherapy, was found to account for the greatest proportion of total costs (64.9%). Among the patient characteristics studied, stage at diagnosis was significantly associated with total treatment costs. Patients at later stages of breast cancer did not differ significantly in their total costs from those at earlier stages however, but their survival time was much shorter. The absence of health insurance was the main factor limiting service uptake. Conclusion From the health care payers’ perspective, the Government subsidization of public hospital charges lowered the direct medical costs of a 5-year treatment course for primary breast cancer in central Vietnam. However, the long treatment course was significantly influenced by out-of-pocket payments for patients without health insurance. PMID:23394855

Economic Analysis of Complex Nuclear Fuel Cycles with NE-COST

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

Ganda, Francesco; Dixon, Brent; Hoffman, Edward

The purpose of this work is to present a new methodology, and associated computational tools, developed within the U.S. Department of Energy (U.S. DOE) Fuel Cycle Option Campaign to quantify the economic performance of complex nuclear fuel cycles. The levelized electricity cost at the busbar is generally chosen to quantify and compare the economic performance of different baseload generating technologies, including of nuclear: it is the cost of electricity which renders the risk-adjusted discounted net present value of the investment cash flow equal to zero. The work presented here is focused on the calculation of the levelized cost of electricitymore » of fuel cycles at mass balance equilibrium, which is termed LCAE (Levelized Cost of Electricity at Equilibrium). To alleviate the computational issues associated with the calculation of the LCAE for complex fuel cycles, a novel approach has been developed, which has been called the “island approach” because of its logical structure: a generic complex fuel cycle is subdivided into subsets of fuel cycle facilities, called islands, each containing one and only one type of reactor or blanket and an arbitrary number of fuel cycle facilities. A nuclear economic software tool, NE-COST, written in the commercial programming software MATLAB®, has been developed to calculate the LCAE of complex fuel cycles with the “island” computational approach. NE-COST has also been developed with the capability to handle uncertainty: the input parameters (both unit costs and fuel cycle characteristics) can have uncertainty distributions associated with them, and the output can be computed in terms of probability density functions of the LCAE. In this paper NE-COST will be used to quantify, as examples, the economic performance of (1) current Light Water Reactors (LWR) once-through systems; (2) continuous plutonium recycling in Fast Reactors (FR) with driver and blanket; (3) Recycling of plutonium bred in FR into LWR. For each fuel cycle, the contributions to the total LCAE of the main cost components will be identified.« less

32 CFR 701.54 - Collection of fees and fee rates for technical data.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

...) Computer search is based on the total cost of the central processing unit, input-output devices, and memory... charge for office copy up to six images)—$3.50 Each additional image—$ .10 Each typewritten page—$3.50...

32 CFR 701.54 - Collection of fees and fee rates for technical data.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

...) Computer search is based on the total cost of the central processing unit, input-output devices, and memory... charge for office copy up to six images)—$3.50 Each additional image—$ .10 Each typewritten page—$3.50...

The cost-effectiveness of the RSI QuickScan intervention programme for computer workers: Results of an economic evaluation alongside a randomised controlled trial.

PubMed

Speklé, Erwin M; Heinrich, Judith; Hoozemans, Marco J M; Blatter, Birgitte M; van der Beek, Allard J; van Dieën, Jaap H; van Tulder, Maurits W

2010-11-11

The costs of arm, shoulder and neck symptoms are high. In order to decrease these costs employers implement interventions aimed at reducing these symptoms. One frequently used intervention is the RSI QuickScan intervention programme. It establishes a risk profile of the target population and subsequently advises interventions following a decision tree based on that risk profile. The purpose of this study was to perform an economic evaluation, from both the societal and companies' perspective, of the RSI QuickScan intervention programme for computer workers. In this study, effectiveness was defined at three levels: exposure to risk factors, prevalence of arm, shoulder and neck symptoms, and days of sick leave. The economic evaluation was conducted alongside a randomised controlled trial (RCT). Participating computer workers from 7 companies (N = 638) were assigned to either the intervention group (N = 320) or the usual care group (N = 318) by means of cluster randomisation (N = 50). The intervention consisted of a tailor-made programme, based on a previously established risk profile. At baseline, 6 and 12 month follow-up, the participants completed the RSI QuickScan questionnaire. Analyses to estimate the effect of the intervention were done according to the intention-to-treat principle. To compare costs between groups, confidence intervals for cost differences were computed by bias-corrected and accelerated bootstrapping. The mean intervention costs, paid by the employer, were 59 euro per participant in the intervention and 28 euro in the usual care group. Mean total health care and non-health care costs per participant were 108 euro in both groups. As to the cost-effectiveness, improvement in received information on healthy computer use as well as in their work posture and movement was observed at higher costs. With regard to the other risk factors, symptoms and sick leave, only small and non-significant effects were found. In this study, the RSI QuickScan intervention programme did not prove to be cost-effective from the both the societal and companies' perspective and, therefore, this study does not provide a financial reason for implementing this intervention. However, with a relatively small investment, the programme did increase the number of workers who received information on healthy computer use and improved their work posture and movement. NTR1117.

Conception et analyse d'un systeme d'optimisation de plans de vol pour les avions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Maazoun, Wissem

The main objective of this thesis is to develop an optimization method for the preparation of flight plans for aircrafts. The flight plan minimizes all costs associated with the flight. We determine an optimal path for an airplane from a departure airport to a destination airport. The optimal path minimizes the sum of all costs, i.e. the cost of fuel added to the cost of time (wages, rental of the aircraft, arrival delays, etc.). The optimal trajectory is obtained by considering all possible trajectories on a 3D graph (longitude, latitude and altitude) where the altitude levels are separated by 2,000 feet, and by applying a shortest path algorithm. The main task was to accurately compute fuel consumption on each edge of the graph, making sure that each arc has a minimal cost and is covered in a realistic way from the point of view of control, i.e. in accordance with the rules of navigation. To compute the cost of an arc, we take into account weather conditions (temperature, pressure, wind components, etc.). The optimization of each arc is done via the evaluation of an optimum speed that takes all costs into account. Each arc of the graph typically includes several sub-phases of the flight, e.g. altitude change, speed change, and constant speed and altitude. In the initial climb and the final descent phases, the costs are determined by considering altitude changes at constant CAS (Calibrated Air Speed) or constant Mach number. CAS and Mach number are adjusted to minimize cost. The aerodynamic model used is the one proposed by Eurocontrol, which uses the BADA (Base of Aircraft Data) tables. This model is based on the total energy equation that determines the instantaneous fuel consumption. Calculations on each arc are done by solving a system of differential equations that systematically takes all costs into account. To compute the cost of an arc, we must know the time to go through it, which is generally unknown. To have well-posed boundary conditions, we use the horizontal displacement as the independent variable of the system of differential equations. We consider the velocity components of the wind in a 3D system of coordinates to compute the instantaneous ground speed of the aircraft. To consider the cost of time, we use the cost index. The cost of an arc depends on the aircraft mass at the beginning of this arc, and this mass depends on the path. As we consider all possible paths, the cost of an arc must be computed for each trajectory to which it belongs. For a long-distance flight, the number of arcs to be considered in the graph is large and therefore the cost of an arc is typically computed many times. Our algorithm computes the costs of one million arcs in seconds while having a high accuracy. The determination of the optimal trajectory can therefore be done in a short time. To get the optimal path, the mass of the aircraft at the departure point must also be optimal. It is therefore necessary to know the optimal amount of fuel for the journey. The aircraft mass is known only at the arrival point. This mass is the mass of the aircraft including passengers, cargo and reserve fuel mass. The optimal path is determined by calculating backwards, i.e. from the arrival point to the departure point. For the determination of the optimal trajectory, we use an elliptical grid that has focal points at the departure and arrival points. The use of this grid is essential for the construction of a direct and acyclic graph. We use the Bellman-Ford algorithm on a DAG to determine the shortest path. This algorithm is easy to implement and results in short computation times. Our algorithm computes an optimal trajectory with an optimal cost for each arc. Altitude changes are done optimally with respect to the mass of the aircraft and the cost of time. Our algorithm gives the mass, speed, altitude and total cost at any point of the trajectory as well as the optimal profiles of climb and descent. A prototype has been implemented in C. We made simulations of all types of possible arcs and of several complete trajectories to illustrate the behaviour of the algorithm.

Costs of rearing children in agricultural economies: an alternative estimation approach and findings from rural Bangladesh.

PubMed

Khan, M M; Magnani, R J; Mock, N B; Saadat, Y S

1993-03-01

There are changes in child costs during demographic transition. This study examines household time allocation from 66 agricultural households in 3 villages in Tangail District in rural north central Bangladesh in 1984-85 (371 days). Component and total child-rearing costs are estimated in alternative ways. Conventional "opportunity wage" measures are considered overestimated. The methodological shortcomings of direct cost accounting procedures and consumer demand methods in computing time cost and monetary cost of child rearing are pointed out. In this study's alternative computation, age standardized equivalent costs are generated. Child food consumption costs were generated from a large national survey conducted in 1983. Nonfood expenditures were estimated by food to nonfood expenditure ratios taken from the aforementioned survey. For estimating breast-feeding costs, an estimate was produced based on the assumption that costs for infant food consumption were a fixed proportion of food costs for older children. Land ownership groups were set up to reflect socioeconomic status: 1) landless households, 2) marginal farm households with 1 acre or .4 hectares of land, 3) middle income households with 1-2 acres of land, 4) upper middle income households with 2-4 acres of land, and 5) upper income or rich households with over 4 acres of land. The nonmarket wage rate for hired household help was used to determine the value of cooking, fetching water, and household cleaning and repairing. The results confirm the low costs of child rearing in high fertility societies. Productive nonmarket activities are effective in subsidizing the costs of children. The addition of a child into households already with children has a low impact on time costs of children; "this economies of scale effect is estimated ... at 20%." The highest relative costs were found in the lowest income households, and the lowest costs were in the highest income households. 5% of total household income is devoted to child rearing in the lowest income households compared to 1% of income in the highest income households. The implications are that fertility decline is more directly related to structural changes in the economy, satisfaction of existing demand for family planning, and the producing additional demand for fertility control.

Productivity associated with visual status of computer users.

PubMed

Daum, Kent M; Clore, Katherine A; Simms, Suzanne S; Vesely, Jon W; Wilczek, Dawn D; Spittle, Brian M; Good, Greg W

2004-01-01

The aim of this project is to examine the potential connection between the astigmatic refractive corrections of subjects using computers and their productivity and comfort. We hypothesize that improving the visual status of subjects using computers results in greater productivity, as well as improved visual comfort. Inclusion criteria required subjects 19 to 30 years of age with complete vision examinations before being enrolled. Using a double-masked, placebo-controlled, randomized design, subjects completed three experimental tasks calculated to assess the effects of refractive error on productivity (time to completion and the number of errors) at a computer. The tasks resembled those commonly undertaken by computer users and involved visual search tasks of: (1) counties and populations; (2) nonsense word search; and (3) a modified text-editing task. Estimates of productivity for time to completion varied from a minimum of 2.5% upwards to 28.7% with 2 D cylinder miscorrection. Assuming a conservative estimate of an overall 2.5% increase in productivity with appropriate astigmatic refractive correction, our data suggest a favorable cost-benefit ratio of at least 2.3 for the visual correction of an employee (total cost 268 dollars) with a salary of 25,000 dollars per year. We conclude that astigmatic refractive error affected both productivity and visual comfort under the conditions of this experiment. These data also suggest a favorable cost-benefit ratio for employers who provide computer-specific eyewear to their employees.

A comparison of critical care research funding and the financial burden of critical illness in the United States.

PubMed

Coopersmith, Craig M; Wunsch, Hannah; Fink, Mitchell P; Linde-Zwirble, Walter T; Olsen, Keith M; Sommers, Marilyn S; Anand, Kanwaljeet J S; Tchorz, Kathryn M; Angus, Derek C; Deutschman, Clifford S

2012-04-01

To estimate federal dollars spent on critical care research, the cost of providing critical care, and to determine whether the percentage of federal research dollars spent on critical care research is commensurate with the financial burden of critical care. The National Institutes of Health Computer Retrieval of Information on Scientific Projects database was queried to identify funded grants whose title or abstract contained a key word potentially related to critical care. Each grant identified was analyzed by two reviewers (three if the analysis was discordant) to subjectively determine whether it was definitely, possibly, or definitely not related to critical care. Hospital and total costs of critical care were estimated from the Premier Database, state discharge data, and Medicare data. To estimate healthcare expenditures associated with caring for critically ill patients, total costs were calculated as the combination of hospitalization costs that included critical illness as well as additional costs in the year after hospital discharge. Of 19,257 grants funded by the National Institutes of Health, 332 (1.7%) were definitely related to critical care and a maximum of 1212 (6.3%) grants were possibly related to critical care. Between 17.4% and 39.0% of total hospital costs were spent on critical care, and a total of between $121 and $263 billion was estimated to be spent on patients who required intensive care. This represents 5.2% to 11.2%, respectively, of total U.S. healthcare spending. The proportion of research dollars spent on critical care is lower than the percentage of healthcare expenditures related to critical illness.

Cost-benefit analysis of biopsy methods for suspicious mammographic lesions; discussion 994-5.

PubMed

Fahy, B N; Bold, R J; Schneider, P D; Khatri, V; Goodnight, J E

2001-09-01

Stereotactic core biopsy (SCB) is more cost-effective than needle-localized biopsy (NLB) for evaluation and treatment of mammographic lesions. A computer-generated mathematical model was developed based on clinical outcome modeling to estimate costs accrued during evaluation and treatment of suspicious mammographic lesions. Total costs were determined for evaluation and subsequent treatment of cancer when either SCB or NLB was used as the initial biopsy method. Cost was estimated by the cumulative work relative value units accrued. The risk of malignancy based on the Breast Imaging Reporting Data System (BIRADS) score and mammographic suspicion of ductal carcinoma in situ were varied to simulate common clinical scenarios. Total cost accumulated during evaluation and subsequent surgical therapy (if required). Evaluation of BIRADS 5 lesions (highly suggestive, risk of malignancy = 90%) resulted in equivalent relative value units for both techniques (SCB, 15.54; NLB, 15.47). Evaluation of lesions highly suspicious for ductal carcinoma in situ yielded similar total treatment relative value units (SCB, 11.49; NLB, 10.17). Only for evaluation of BIRADS 4 lesions (suspicious abnormality, risk of malignancy = 34%) was SCB more cost-effective than NLB (SCB, 7.65 vs. NLB, 15.66). No difference in cost-benefit was found when lesions highly suggestive of malignancy (BIRADS 5) or those suspicious for ductal carcinoma in situ were evaluated initially with SCB vs. NLB, thereby disproving the hypothesis. Only for intermediate-risk lesions (BIRADS 4) did initial evaluation with SCB yield a greater cost savings than with NLB.

IFCPT S-Duct Grid-Adapted FUN3D Computations for the Third Propulsion Aerodynamics Works

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Davis, Zach S.; Park, M. A.

2017-01-01

Contributions of the unstructured Reynolds-averaged Navier-Stokes code, FUN3D, to the 3rd AIAA Propulsion Aerodynamics Workshop are described for the diffusing IFCPT S-Duct. Using workshop-supplied grids, results for the baseline S-Duct, baseline S-Duct with Aerodynamic Interface Plane (AIP) rake hardware, and baseline S-Duct with flow control devices are compared with experimental data and results computed with output-based, off-body grid adaptation in FUN3D. Due to the absence of influential geometry components, total pressure recovery is overpredicted on the baseline S-Duct and S-Duct with flow control vanes when compared to experimental values. An estimate for the exact value of total pressure recovery is derived for these cases given an infinitely refined mesh. When results from output-based mesh adaptation are compared with those computed on workshop-supplied grids, a considerable improvement in predicting total pressure recovery is observed. By including more representative geometry, output-based mesh adaptation compares very favorably with experimental data in terms of predicting the total pressure recovery cost-function; whereas, results computed using the workshop-supplied grids are underpredicted.

The Cost of Increasing Physical Activity and Maintaining Weight for Mid-Life Sedentary African American Women

PubMed Central

Johnson, Tricia; Schoeny, Michael; Fogg, Louis; Wilbur, JoEllen

2015-01-01

Objective To evaluate the marginal costs of increasing physical activity and maintaining weight for a lifestyle physical activity program targeting sedentary African American women. Methods Outcomes included change in minutes of total moderate to vigorous physical activity, leisure time moderate to vigorous physical activity and walking per week, and weight stability between baseline and maintenance at 48 weeks. Marginal cost effectiveness ratios (MCERs) were calculated for each outcome, and 95% confidence intervals were computed using a bootstrap method. The analysis was from the societal perspective and calculated in 2013 US dollars. Results For the 260 participants in the analysis, program costs were $165 ± 19, and participant costs were $164 ± 35, for a total cost of $329 ± 49. The MCER for change in walking was $1.50/min/wk (95% CI: 1.28, 1.87), $1.73/min/wk (95% CI: 1.41, 2.18) for change in moderate to vigorous physical activity, and $1.94/min/wk (95% CI: 1.58, 2.40) for leisure-time moderate to vigorous physical activity. The MCER for weight stability was $412 (95% CI: 399, 456). Discussion The Women's Lifestyle Physical Activity Program is a relatively low cost strategy for increasing physical activity. The marginal cost of increasing physical activity is lower than for weight stability. The participant costs related to time in the program were nearly half of the total costs, suggesting that practitioners and policy-makers should consider the participant cost when disseminating a lifestyle physical activity program into practice. PMID:26797232

System cost/performance analysis (study 2.3). Volume 1: Executive summary

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kazangey, T.

1973-01-01

The relationships between performance, safety, cost, and schedule parameters were identified and quantified in support of an overall effort to generate program models and methodology that provide insight into a total space vehicle program. A specific space vehicle system, the attitude control system (ACS), was used, and a modeling methodology was selected that develops a consistent set of quantitative relationships among performance, safety, cost, and schedule, based on the characteristics of the components utilized in candidate mechanisms. These descriptive equations were developed for a three-axis, earth-pointing, mass expulsion ACS. A data base describing typical candidate ACS components was implemented, along with a computer program to perform sample calculations. This approach, implemented on a computer, is capable of determining the effect of a change in functional requirements to the ACS mechanization and the resulting cost and schedule. By a simple extension of this modeling methodology to the other systems in a space vehicle, a complete space vehicle model can be developed. Study results and recommendations are presented.

Investigation and appreciation of optimal output feedback. Volume 1: A convergent algorithm for the stochastic infinite-time discrete optimal output feedback problem

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Halyo, N.; Broussard, J. R.

1984-01-01

The stochastic, infinite time, discrete output feedback problem for time invariant linear systems is examined. Two sets of sufficient conditions for the existence of a stable, globally optimal solution are presented. An expression for the total change in the cost function due to a change in the feedback gain is obtained. This expression is used to show that a sequence of gains can be obtained by an algorithm, so that the corresponding cost sequence is monotonically decreasing and the corresponding sequence of the cost gradient converges to zero. The algorithm is guaranteed to obtain a critical point of the cost function. The computational steps necessary to implement the algorithm on a computer are presented. The results are applied to a digital outer loop flight control problem. The numerical results for this 13th order problem indicate a rate of convergence considerably faster than two other algorithms used for comparison.

The cost of assistive devices for children with mobility limitation.

PubMed

Korpela, R A; Siirtola, T O; Koivikko, M J

1992-10-01

This study evaluated the costs of assistive devices for children with motor limitations at home, in day care, and in school, and the effect of diagnosis and severity of disabilities on costs. 201 children (mean age 7.4 years) who used 1274 various assistive devices (85.7% at home, 6.1% in day care, and 8.2% in school) were studied. The cost per device varied from $8.14 to $8138 with an average value of $539 per device. The distribution of costs per capita was unequal: 52.2% of children used 15.6% of total costs and 4.5% of children used 20.8% of total costs. The severity of motor impairment and the age of the child were the most important indicators associated with the need and cost of assistive devices. Assistive devices for basic needs, such as sitting, mobility, and personal hygiene, had a relatively low effect on costs in comparison with the high-technology devices, like powered wheelchairs and computers. Better cooperation with day care and school professionals, better assessment of needs, follow-up and recirculation of assistive devices are ways to promote rehabilitation services and partly solve the discrepancies between the costs of available technology and the resources to pay for it.

Cost analysis of Human Papillomavirus-related cervical diseases and genital warts in Swaziland

PubMed Central

Sartorius, Benn; Dlamini, Xolisile; Östensson, Ellinor

2017-01-01

Background Human papillomavirus (HPV) has proven to be the cause of several severe clinical conditions on the cervix, vulva, vagina, anus, oropharynx and penis. Several studies have assessed the costs of cervical lesions, cervical cancer (CC), and genital warts. However, few have been done in Africa and none in Swaziland. Cost analysis is critical in providing useful information for economic evaluations to guide policymakers concerned with the allocation of resources in order to reduce the disease burden. Materials and methods A prevalence-based cost of illness (COI) methodology was used to investigate the economic burden of HPV-related diseases. We used a top-down approach for the cost associated with hospital care and a bottom-up approach to estimate the cost associated with outpatient and primary care. The current study was conducted from a provider perspective since the state bears the majority of the costs of screening and treatment in Swaziland. All identifiable direct medical costs were considered for cervical lesions, cervical cancer and genital warts, which were primary diagnoses during 2015. A mix of bottom up micro-costing ingredients approach and top-down approaches was used to collect data on costs. All costs were computed at the price level of 2015 and converted to dollars ($). Results The total annual estimated direct medical cost associated with screening, managing and treating cervical lesions, CC and genital warts in Swaziland was $16 million. The largest cost in the analysis was estimated for treatment of high-grade cervical lesions and cervical cancer representing 80% of the total cost ($12.6 million). Costs for screening only represented 5% of the total cost ($0.9 million). Treatment of genital warts represented 6% of the total cost ($1million). Conclusion According to the cost estimations in this study, the economic burden of HPV-related cervical diseases and genital warts represents a major public health issue in Swaziland. Prevention of HPV infection with a national HPV immunization programme for pre-adolescent girls would prevent the majority of CC related deaths and associated costs. PMID:28531205

HIV prevention costs and their predictors: evidence from the ORPHEA Project in Kenya

PubMed Central

Galárraga, Omar; Wamai, Richard G; Sosa-Rubí, Sandra G; Mugo, Mercy G; Contreras-Loya, David; Bautista-Arredondo, Sergio; Nyakundi, Helen; Wang’ombe, Joseph K

2017-01-01

Abstract We estimate costs and their predictors for three HIV prevention interventions in Kenya: HIV testing and counselling (HTC), prevention of mother-to-child transmission (PMTCT) and voluntary medical male circumcision (VMMC). As part of the ‘Optimizing the Response of Prevention: HIV Efficiency in Africa’ (ORPHEA) project, we collected retrospective data from government and non-governmental health facilities for 2011–12. We used multi-stage sampling to determine a sample of health facilities by type, ownership, size and interventions offered totalling 144 sites in 78 health facilities in 33 districts across Kenya. Data sources included key informants, registers and time-motion observation methods. Total costs of production were computed using both quantity and unit price of each input. Average cost was estimated by dividing total cost per intervention by number of clients accessing the intervention. Multivariate regression methods were used to analyse predictors of log-transformed average costs. Average costs were $7 and $79 per HTC and PMTCT client tested, respectively; and $66 per VMMC procedure. Results show evidence of economies of scale for PMTCT and VMMC: increasing the number of clients per year by 100% was associated with cost reductions of 50% for PMTCT, and 45% for VMMC. Task shifting was associated with reduced costs for both PMTCT (59%) and VMMC (54%). Costs in hospitals were higher for PMTCT (56%) in comparison to non-hospitals. Facilities that performed testing based on risk factors as opposed to universal screening had higher HTC average costs (79%). Lower VMMC costs were associated with availability of male reproductive health services (59%) and presence of community advisory board (52%). Aside from increasing production scale, HIV prevention costs may be contained by using task shifting, non-hospital sites, service integration and community supervision. PMID:29029086

Mobile Technologies for Managing Heart Failure: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis.

PubMed

Carbo, Anisleidy; Gupta, Manish; Tamariz, Leonardo; Palacio, Ana; Levis, Silvina; Nemeth, Zsuzsanna; Dang, Stuti

2018-04-02

Randomized clinical trials (RCTs) conducted among heart failure (HF) patients have reported that mobile technologies can improve HF-related outcomes. Our aim was to conduct a meta-analysis to evaluate m-Health's impact on healthcare services utilization, mortality, and cost. We searched MEDLINE, Cochrane, CINAHL, and EMBASE for studies published between 1966 and May-2017. We included studies that compared the use of m-Health in HF patients to usual care. m-Health is defined as the use of mobile computing and communication technologies to record and transmit data. The outcomes were HF-related and all-cause hospital days, cost, admissions, and mortality. Our search strategy resulted in 1,494 articles. We included 10 RCTs and 1 quasi-experimental study, which represented 3,109 patients in North America and Europe. Patient average age range was 53-80 years, New York Heart Association (NYHA) class III, and Left Ventricular Ejection Fraction <50%. Patients were mostly monitored daily and followed for an average of 6 months. A reduction was seen in HF-related hospital days. Nonsignificant reductions were seen in HF-related cost, admissions, and mortality and total mortality. We found no significant differences for all-cause hospital days and admissions, and an increase in total cost. m-Health reduced HF-related hospital days, showed reduction trends in total mortality and HF-related admissions, mortality and cost, and increased total costs related to more clinic visits and implementation of new technologies. More studies reporting consistent quality outcomes are warranted to give conclusive information about the effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of m-Health interventions for HF.

One-Year Health Care Costs Associated with Delirium in the Elderly

PubMed Central

Leslie, Douglas L.; Marcantonio, Edward R.; Zhang, Ying; Leo-Summers, Linda; Inouye, Sharon K.

2015-01-01

Background While delirium has been increasingly recognized as a serious and potentially preventable source of morbidity and mortality for hospitalized older persons, its long-term implications are not well understood. The objective of this study is to determine the total 1-year health care costs associated with delirium. Methods Hospitalized patients aged 70 years and older who participated in a previous controlled clinical trial of a delirium prevention intervention at an academic medical center between 1995 and 1998 were followed for 1 year after discharge. Total inflation-adjusted healthcare costs were computed using data from Medicare administrative files, hospital billing records, and the Connecticut Long-Term Care Registry. Regression models were used to determine costs associated with delirium after adjusting for patient sociodemographic and clinical characteristics. Results During the index hospitalization, 109 (13%) patients developed delirium while 732 did not. Patients with delirium had significantly higher unadjusted healthcare costs than non-delirious patients and survived fewer days. After adjusting for pertinent demographic and clinical characteristics, average costs per day survived among patients with delirium were over two and a half times the costs among patients without delirium. Total cost estimates attributable to delirium ranged from $16,303 to $64,421 per patient, implying that the national burden of delirium on the health care system ranges from $38 billion to $152 billion each year. Conclusions The economic impact of delirium is substantial, rivaling the health care costs of falls and diabetes. These results highlight the need for increased efforts to mitigate this clinically significant and costly disorder. PMID:18195192

Solar Decisions: A Microcomputer Program.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Taylor, Charles O.; Gittinger, Jack D.

1985-01-01

A program is presented, designed for the Apple II, which enables users to compute heat loss of a building and determine the total heating cost, regardless of the type of fuel. Variables to be considered are explained and a step-by-step explanation of the program is included. (CT)

Desktop Virtualization in Action: Simplicity Is Power

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fennell, Dustin

2010-01-01

Discover how your institution can better manage and increase access to instructional applications and desktops while providing a blended learning environment. Receive practical insight into how academic computing virtualization can be leveraged to enhance education at your institution while lowering Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) and reducing the…

Pareto-optimal phylogenetic tree reconciliation

PubMed Central

Libeskind-Hadas, Ran; Wu, Yi-Chieh; Bansal, Mukul S.; Kellis, Manolis

2014-01-01

Motivation: Phylogenetic tree reconciliation is a widely used method for reconstructing the evolutionary histories of gene families and species, hosts and parasites and other dependent pairs of entities. Reconciliation is typically performed using maximum parsimony, in which each evolutionary event type is assigned a cost and the objective is to find a reconciliation of minimum total cost. It is generally understood that reconciliations are sensitive to event costs, but little is understood about the relationship between event costs and solutions. Moreover, choosing appropriate event costs is a notoriously difficult problem. Results: We address this problem by giving an efficient algorithm for computing Pareto-optimal sets of reconciliations, thus providing the first systematic method for understanding the relationship between event costs and reconciliations. This, in turn, results in new techniques for computing event support values and, for cophylogenetic analyses, performing robust statistical tests. We provide new software tools and demonstrate their use on a number of datasets from evolutionary genomic and cophylogenetic studies. Availability and implementation: Our Python tools are freely available at www.cs.hmc.edu/∼hadas/xscape. Contact: mukul@engr.uconn.edu Supplementary information: Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online. PMID:24932009

The role of radiation hard solar cells in minimizing the costs of global satellite communications systems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Summers, Geoffrey P.; Walters, Robert J.; Messenger, Scott R.; Burke, Edward A.

1995-01-01

An analysis embodied in a PC computer program is presented which quantitatively demonstrates how the availability of radiation hard solar cells can minimize the cost of a global satellite communication system. The chief distinction between the currently proposed systems, such as Iridium Odyssey and Ellipsat, is the number of satellites employed and their operating altitudes. Analysis of the major costs associated with implementing these systems shows that operation within the earth's radiation belts can reduce the total system cost by as much as a factor of two, so long as radiation hard components including solar cells, can be used. A detailed evaluation of several types of planar solar cells is given, including commercially available Si and GaAs/Ge cells, and InP/Si cells which are under development. The computer program calculates the end of life (EOL) power density of solar arrays taking into account the cell geometry, coverglass thickness, support frame, electrical interconnects, etc. The EOL power density can be determined for any altitude from low earth orbit (LEO) to geosynchronous (GEO) and for equatorial to polar planes of inclination. The mission duration can be varied over the entire range planned for the proposed satellite systems. An algorithm is included in the program for determining the degradation of cell efficiency for different cell technologies due to proton and electron irradiation. The program can be used to determine the optimum configuration for any cell technology for a particular orbit and for a specified mission life. Several examples of applying the program are presented, in which it is shown that the EOL power density of different technologies can vary by an order of magnitude for certain missions. Therefore, although a relatively radiation soft technology can be made to provide the required EOL power by simply increasing the size of the array, the impact on the total system budget could be unacceptable, due to increased launch and hardware costs. In aggregate these factors can account for more than a 10% increase in the total system cost. Since the estimated total costs of proposed global coverage systems range from $1 Billion to $9 Billion, the availability of radiation hard solar cells could make a decisive difference in the selection of a particular constellation architecture.

Subaru Telescope Network III (STN-III): more effective, more operation-oriented, and more inexpensive solutions for the observatory's needs

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Noumaru, Junichi; Kawai, Jun A.; Schubert, Kiaina; Yagi, Masafumi; Takata, Tadafumi; Winegar, Tom; Scanlon, Tim; Nishida, Takuhiro; Fox, Camron; Hayasaka, James; Forester, Jason; Uchida, Kenji; Nakamura, Isamu; Tom, Richard; Koura, Norikazu; Yamamoto, Tadahiro; Tanoue, Toshiya; Yamada, Toru

2008-07-01

Subaru Telescope has recently replaced most equipment of Subaru Telescope Network II with the new equipment which includes 124TB of RAID system for data archive. Switching the data storage from tape to RAID enables users to access the data faster. The STN-III dropped some important components of STN-II, such as supercomputers, development & testing subsystem for Subaru Observation Control System, or data processing subsystem. On the other hand, we invested more computers to the remote operation system. Thanks to IT innovations, our LAN as well as the network between Hilo and summit were upgraded to gigabit network at the similar or even reduced cost from the previous system. As the result of the redesigning of the computer system by more focusing on the observatory operation, we greatly reduced the total cost for computer rental, purchase and maintenance.

Benefits of cloud computing for PACS and archiving.

PubMed

Koch, Patrick

2012-01-01

The goal of cloud-based services is to provide easy, scalable access to computing resources and IT services. The healthcare industry requires a private cloud that adheres to government mandates designed to ensure privacy and security of patient data while enabling access by authorized users. Cloud-based computing in the imaging market has evolved from a service that provided cost effective disaster recovery for archived data to fully featured PACS and vendor neutral archiving services that can address the needs of healthcare providers of all sizes. Healthcare providers worldwide are now using the cloud to distribute images to remote radiologists while supporting advanced reading tools, deliver radiology reports and imaging studies to referring physicians, and provide redundant data storage. Vendor managed cloud services eliminate large capital investments in equipment and maintenance, as well as staffing for the data center--creating a reduction in total cost of ownership for the healthcare provider.

Burden of micronutrient deficiencies by socio-economic strata in children aged 6 months to 5 years in the Philippines.

PubMed

Wieser, Simon; Plessow, Rafael; Eichler, Klaus; Malek, Olivia; Capanzana, Mario V; Agdeppa, Imelda; Bruegger, Urs

2013-12-11

Micronutrient deficiencies (MNDs) are a chronic lack of vitamins and minerals and constitute a huge public health problem. MNDs have severe health consequences and are particularly harmful during early childhood due to their impact on the physical and cognitive development. We estimate the costs of illness due to iron deficiency (IDA), vitamin A deficiency (VAD) and zinc deficiency (ZnD) in 2 age groups (6-23 and 24-59 months) of Filipino children by socio-economic strata in 2008. We build a health economic model simulating the consequences of MNDs in childhood over the entire lifetime. The model is based on a health survey and a nutrition survey carried out in 2008. The sample populations are first structured into 10 socio-economic strata (SES) and 2 age groups. Health consequences of MNDs are modelled based on information extracted from literature. Direct medical costs, production losses and intangible costs are computed and long term costs are discounted to present value. Total lifetime costs of IDA, VAD and ZnD amounted to direct medical costs of 30 million dollars, production losses of 618 million dollars and intangible costs of 122,138 disability adjusted life years (DALYs). These costs can be interpreted as the lifetime costs of a 1-year cohort affected by MNDs between the age of 6-59 months. Direct medical costs are dominated by costs due to ZnD (89% of total), production losses by losses in future lifetime (90% of total) and intangible costs by premature death (47% of total DALY losses) and losses in future lifetime (43%). Costs of MNDs differ considerably between SES as costs in the poorest third of the households are 5 times higher than in the wealthiest third. MNDs lead to substantial costs in 6-59-month-old children in the Philippines. Costs are highly concentrated in the lower SES and in children 6-23 months old. These results may have important implications for the design, evaluation and choice of the most effective and cost-effective policies aimed at the reduction of MNDs.

Burden of micronutrient deficiencies by socio-economic strata in children aged 6 months to 5 years in the Philippines

PubMed Central

2013-01-01

Background Micronutrient deficiencies (MNDs) are a chronic lack of vitamins and minerals and constitute a huge public health problem. MNDs have severe health consequences and are particularly harmful during early childhood due to their impact on the physical and cognitive development. We estimate the costs of illness due to iron deficiency (IDA), vitamin A deficiency (VAD) and zinc deficiency (ZnD) in 2 age groups (6–23 and 24–59 months) of Filipino children by socio-economic strata in 2008. Methods We build a health economic model simulating the consequences of MNDs in childhood over the entire lifetime. The model is based on a health survey and a nutrition survey carried out in 2008. The sample populations are first structured into 10 socio-economic strata (SES) and 2 age groups. Health consequences of MNDs are modelled based on information extracted from literature. Direct medical costs, production losses and intangible costs are computed and long term costs are discounted to present value. Results Total lifetime costs of IDA, VAD and ZnD amounted to direct medical costs of 30 million dollars, production losses of 618 million dollars and intangible costs of 122,138 disability adjusted life years (DALYs). These costs can be interpreted as the lifetime costs of a 1-year cohort affected by MNDs between the age of 6–59 months. Direct medical costs are dominated by costs due to ZnD (89% of total), production losses by losses in future lifetime (90% of total) and intangible costs by premature death (47% of total DALY losses) and losses in future lifetime (43%). Costs of MNDs differ considerably between SES as costs in the poorest third of the households are 5 times higher than in the wealthiest third. Conclusions MNDs lead to substantial costs in 6-59-month-old children in the Philippines. Costs are highly concentrated in the lower SES and in children 6–23 months old. These results may have important implications for the design, evaluation and choice of the most effective and cost-effective policies aimed at the reduction of MNDs. PMID:24330481

Economic evaluation comparing intraoperative cone beam CT-based navigation and conventional fluoroscopy for the placement of spinal pedicle screws: a patient-level data cost-effectiveness analysis.

PubMed

Dea, Nicolas; Fisher, Charles G; Batke, Juliet; Strelzow, Jason; Mendelsohn, Daniel; Paquette, Scott J; Kwon, Brian K; Boyd, Michael D; Dvorak, Marcel F S; Street, John T

2016-01-01

Pedicle screws are routinely used in contemporary spinal surgery. Screw misplacement may be asymptomatic but is also correlated with potential adverse events. Computer-assisted surgery (CAS) has been associated with improved screw placement accuracy rates. However, this technology has substantial acquisition and maintenance costs. Despite its increasing usage, no rigorous full economic evaluation comparing this technology to current standard of care has been reported. Medical costs are exploding in an unsustainable way. Health economic theory requires that medical equipment costs be compared with expected benefits. To answer this question for computer-assisted spinal surgery, we present an economic evaluation looking specifically at symptomatic misplaced screws leading to reoperation secondary to neurologic deficits or biomechanical concerns. The study design was an observational case-control study from prospectively collected data of consecutive patients treated with the aid of CAS (treatment group) compared with a matched historical cohort of patients treated with conventional fluoroscopy (control group). The patient sample consisted of consecutive patients treated surgically at a quaternary academic center. The primary effectiveness measure studied was the number of reoperations for misplaced screws within 1 year of the index surgery. Secondary outcome measures included were total adverse event rate and postoperative computed tomography usage for pedicle screw examination. A patient-level data cost-effectiveness analysis from the hospital perspective was conducted to determine the value of a navigation system coupled with intraoperative 3-D imaging (O-arm Imaging and the StealthStation S7 Navigation Systems, Medtronic, Louisville, CO, USA) in adult spinal surgery. The capital costs for both alternatives were reported as equivalent annual costs based on the annuitization of capital expenditures method using a 3% discount rate and a 7-year amortization period. Annual maintenance costs were also added. Finally, reoperation costs using a micro-costing approach were calculated for both groups. An incremental cost-effectiveness ratio was calculated and reported as cost per reoperation avoided. Based on reoperation costs in Canada and in the United States, a minimal caseload was calculated for the more expensive alternative to be cost saving. Sensitivity analyses were also conducted. A total of 5,132 pedicle screws were inserted in 502 patients during the study period: 2,682 screws in 253 patients in the treatment group and 2,450 screws in 249 patients in the control group. Overall accuracy rates were 95.2% for the treatment group and 86.9% for the control group. Within 1 year post treatment, two patients (0.8%) required a revision surgery in the treatment group compared with 15 patients (6%) in the control group. An incremental cost-effectiveness ratio of $15,961 per reoperation avoided was calculated for the CAS group. Based on a reoperation cost of $12,618, this new technology becomes cost saving for centers performing more than 254 instrumented spinal procedures per year. Computer-assisted spinal surgery has the potential to reduce reoperation rates and thus to have serious cost-effectiveness and policy implications. High acquisition and maintenance costs of this technology can be offset by equally high reoperation costs. Our cost-effectiveness analysis showed that for high-volume centers with a similar case complexity to the studied population, this technology is economically justified. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Use of a Novel Accounting and Grouping Method for Major Trunk Injury-Analysis of Data from a Statewide Trauma Financial Survey.

PubMed

Joubert, Kyla D; Mabry, Charles D; Kalkwarf, Kyle J; Betzold, Richard D; Spencer, Horace J; Spinks, Kara M; Porter, Austin; Karim, Saleema; Robertson, Ronald D; Sutherland, Michael J; Maxson, Robert T

2016-09-01

Major trunk trauma is common and costly, but comparisons of costs between trauma centers (TCs) are rare. Understanding cost is essential to improve quality, manage trauma service lines, and to facilitate institutional commitment for trauma. We have used results of a statewide trauma financial survey of Levels I to IV TC to develop a useful grouping method for costs and clinical characteristics of major trunk trauma. The trauma financial survey collected billing and clinical data on 75 per cent of the state trauma registry patients for fiscal year 2012. Cost was calculated by separately accounting for embedded costs of trauma response and verification, and then adjusting reasonable costs from the Medicare cost report for each TC. The cost-to-charge ratios were then recalculated and used to determine uniform cost estimates for each patient. From the 13,215 patients submitted for the survey, we selected 1,094 patients with major trunk trauma: lengths of stay ≥ 48 hours and a maximum injury of AIS ≥3 for either thorax or abdominal trauma. These patients were then divided into three Injury Severity Score (ISS) groups of 9 to 15, 16 to 24, or 25+ to stratify patients into similar injury groups for analysis of cost and cost drivers. For abdominal injury, average total cost for patients with ISS 9 to 15 was $17,429. Total cost and cost per day increased with severity of injury, with $51,585 being the total cost for those with ISS 25. Similar trends existed for thoracic injury. Use of the Medicare cost report and cost-to-charge ratios to compute uniform costs with an innovative grouping method applied to data collected across a statewide trauma system provides unique information regarding cost and outcomes, which affects quality improvement, trauma service line management, and decisions on TC participation.

Cost-effectiveness of computer-assisted training in cognitive-behavioral therapy as an adjunct to standard care for addiction.

PubMed

Olmstead, Todd A; Ostrow, Cary D; Carroll, Kathleen M

2010-08-01

To determine the cost-effectiveness, from clinic and patient perspectives, of a computer-based version of cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT4CBT) as an addition to regular clinical practice for substance dependence. PARTICIPANTS, DESIGN AND MEASUREMENTS: This cost-effectiveness study is based on a randomized clinical trial in which 77 individuals seeking treatment for substance dependence at an outpatient community setting were randomly assigned to treatment as usual (TAU) or TAU plus biweekly access to computer-based training in CBT (TAU plus CBT4CBT). The primary patient outcome measure was the total number of drug-free specimens provided during treatment. Incremental cost-effectiveness ratios (ICERs) and cost-effectiveness acceptability curves (CEACs) were used to determine the cost-effectiveness of TAU plus CBT4CBT relative to TAU alone. Results are presented from both the clinic and patient perspectives and are shown to be robust to (i) sensitivity analyses and (ii) a secondary objective patient outcome measure. The per patient cost of adding CBT4CBT to standard care was $39 ($27) from the clinic (patient) perspective. From the clinic (patient) perspective, TAU plus CBT4CBT is likely to be cost-effective when the threshold value to decision makers of an additional drug-free specimen is greater than approximately $21 ($15), and TAU alone is likely to be cost-effective when the threshold value is less than approximately $21 ($15). The ICERs for TAU plus CBT4CBT also compare favorably to ICERs reported elsewhere for other empirically validated therapies, including contingency management. TAU plus CBT4CBT appears to be a good value from both the clinic and patient perspectives. Copyright (c) 2010 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Spacelab Mission Implementation Cost Assessment (SMICA)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Guynes, B. V.

1984-01-01

A total savings of approximately 20 percent is attainable if: (1) mission management and ground processing schedules are compressed; (2) the equipping, staffing, and operating of the Payload Operations Control Center is revised, and (3) methods of working with experiment developers are changed. The development of a new mission implementation technique, which includes mission definition, experiment development, and mission integration/operations, is examined. The Payload Operations Control Center is to relocate and utilize new computer equipment to produce cost savings. Methods of reducing costs by minimizing the Spacelab and payload processing time during pre- and post-mission operation at KSC are analyzed. The changes required to reduce costs in the analytical integration process are studied. The influence of time, requirements accountability, and risk on costs is discussed. Recommendation for cost reductions developed by the Spacelab Mission Implementation Cost Assessment study are listed.

Economic lot sizing in a production system with random demand

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lee, Shine-Der; Yang, Chin-Ming; Lan, Shu-Chuan

2016-04-01

An extended economic production quantity model that copes with random demand is developed in this paper. A unique feature of the proposed study is the consideration of transient shortage during the production stage, which has not been explicitly analysed in existing literature. The considered costs include set-up cost for the batch production, inventory carrying cost during the production and depletion stages in one replenishment cycle, and shortage cost when demand cannot be satisfied from the shop floor immediately. Based on renewal reward process, a per-unit-time expected cost model is developed and analysed. Under some mild condition, it can be shown that the approximate cost function is convex. Computational experiments have demonstrated that the average reduction in total cost is significant when the proposed lot sizing policy is compared with those with deterministic demand.

Development and Validation of the Total HUman Model for Safety (THUMS) Toward Further Understanding of Occupant Injury Mechanisms in Precrash and During Crash.

PubMed

Iwamoto, Masami; Nakahira, Yuko; Kimpara, Hideyuki

2015-01-01

Active safety devices such as automatic emergency brake (AEB) and precrash seat belt have the potential to accomplish further reduction in the number of the fatalities due to automotive accidents. However, their effectiveness should be investigated by more accurate estimations of their interaction with human bodies. Computational human body models are suitable for investigation, especially considering muscular tone effects on occupant motions and injury outcomes. However, the conventional modeling approaches such as multibody models and detailed finite element (FE) models have advantages and disadvantages in computational costs and injury predictions considering muscular tone effects. The objective of this study is to develop and validate a human body FE model with whole body muscles, which can be used for the detailed investigation of interaction between human bodies and vehicular structures including some safety devices precrash and during a crash with relatively low computational costs. In this study, we developed a human body FE model called THUMS (Total HUman Model for Safety) with a body size of 50th percentile adult male (AM50) and a sitting posture. The model has anatomical structures of bones, ligaments, muscles, brain, and internal organs. The total number of elements is 281,260, which would realize relatively low computational costs. Deformable material models were assigned to all body parts. The muscle-tendon complexes were modeled by truss elements with Hill-type muscle material and seat belt elements with tension-only material. The THUMS was validated against 35 series of cadaver or volunteer test data on frontal, lateral, and rear impacts. Model validations for 15 series of cadaver test data associated with frontal impacts are presented in this article. The THUMS with a vehicle sled model was applied to investigate effects of muscle activations on occupant kinematics and injury outcomes in specific frontal impact situations with AEB. In the validations using 5 series of cadaver test data, force-time curves predicted by the THUMS were quantitatively evaluated using correlation and analysis (CORA), which showed good or acceptable agreement with cadaver test data in most cases. The investigation of muscular effects showed that muscle activation levels and timing had significant effects on occupant kinematics and injury outcomes. Although further studies on accident injury reconstruction are needed, the THUMS has the potential for predictions of occupant kinematics and injury outcomes considering muscular tone effects with relatively low computational costs.

A time and imaging cost analysis of low-risk ED observation patients: a conservative 64-section computed tomography coronary angiography "triple rule-out" compared to nuclear stress test strategy.

PubMed

Takakuwa, Kevin M; Halpern, Ethan J; Shofer, Frances S

2011-02-01

The study aimed to examine time and imaging costs of 2 different imaging strategies for low-risk emergency department (ED) observation patients with acute chest pain or symptoms suggestive of acute coronary syndrome. We compared a "triple rule-out" (TRO) 64-section multidetector computed tomography protocol with nuclear stress testing. This was a prospective observational cohort study of consecutive ED patients who were enrolled in our chest pain observation protocol during a 16-month period. Our standard observation protocol included a minimum of 2 sets of cardiac enzymes at least 6 hours apart followed by a nuclear stress test. Once a week, observation patients were offered a TRO (to evaluate for coronary artery disease, thoracic dissection, and pulmonary embolus) multidetector computed tomography with the option of further stress testing for those patients found to have evidence of coronary artery disease. We analyzed 832 consecutive observation patients including 214 patients who underwent the TRO protocol. Mean total length of stay was 16.1 hours for TRO patients, 16.3 hours for TRO plus other imaging test, 22.6 hours for nuclear stress testing, 23.3 hours for nuclear stress testing plus other imaging tests, and 23.7 hours for nuclear stress testing plus TRO (P < .0001 for TRO and TRO + other test compared to stress test ± other test). Mean imaging times were 3.6, 4.4, 5.9, 7.5, and 6.6 hours, respectively (P < .05 for TRO and TRO + other test compared to stress test ± other test). Mean imaging costs were $1307 for TRO patients vs $945 for nuclear stress testing. Triple rule-out reduced total length of stay and imaging time but incurred higher imaging costs. A per-hospital analysis would be needed to determine if patient time savings justify the higher imaging costs. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Cost identification of abdominal aortic aneurysm imaging by using time and motion analyses.

PubMed

Rubin, G D; Armerding, M D; Dake, M D; Napel, S

2000-04-01

To compare the costs of performing helical computed tomographic (CT) angiography with three-dimensional rendering versus intraarterial digital subtraction angiography (DSA) for preoperative imaging of abdominal aortic aneurysms (AAAs). A single observer determined the variable direct costs of performing nine intraarterial DSA and 10 CT angiographic examinations in age- and general health-matched patients with AAA by using time and motion analyses. All personnel directly involved in the cases were tracked, and the involvement times were recorded to the nearest minute. All material items used during the procedures were recorded. The cost of labor was determined from personnel reimbursement data, and the cost of materials, from vendor pricing. The variable direct costs of laboratory tests and using the ambulatory treatment unit for postprocedural monitoring, as well as all fixed direct costs, were assessed from hospital accounting records. The total costs were determined for each procedure and compared by using the Student t test and calculating the CIs. The mean total direct cost of intraarterial DSA (+/- SD) was $1,052 +/- 71, and that of CT angiography was $300 +/- 30, which are significantly different (P < 4.1 x 10(-11)). With 95% confidence, intraarterial DSA cost 3.2-3.7 times more than CT angiography for the assessment of AAA. Assuming equal diagnostic utility and procedure-related morbidity, institutions may have substantial cost savings whenever CT angiography can replace intraarterial DSA for imaging AAAs.

Computer-aided engineering of semiconductor integrated circuits

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Meindl, J. D.; Dutton, R. W.; Gibbons, J. F.; Helms, C. R.; Plummer, J. D.; Tiller, W. A.; Ho, C. P.; Saraswat, K. C.; Deal, B. E.; Kamins, T. I.

1980-07-01

Economical procurement of small quantities of high performance custom integrated circuits for military systems is impeded by inadequate process, device and circuit models that handicap low cost computer aided design. The principal objective of this program is to formulate physical models of fabrication processes, devices and circuits to allow total computer-aided design of custom large-scale integrated circuits. The basic areas under investigation are (1) thermal oxidation, (2) ion implantation and diffusion, (3) chemical vapor deposition of silicon and refractory metal silicides, (4) device simulation and analytic measurements. This report discusses the fourth year of the program.

Real-world healthcare costs of ipilimumab in patients with advanced cutaneous melanoma in The Netherlands.

PubMed

Franken, Margreet G; Leeneman, Brenda; Jochems, Anouk; Schouwenburg, Maartje G; Aarts, Maureen J B; van Akkooi, Alexander C J; van den Berkmortel, Franchette W P J; van den Eertwegh, Alfonsus J M; de Groot, Jan Willem B; van der Hoeven, Koos J M; Hospers, Geke A P; Kapiteijn, Ellen; Koornstra, Rutger; Kruit, Wim H J; Louwman, Marieke W J; Piersma, Djura; van Rijn, Rozemarijn S; Suijkerbuijk, Karijn P M; Ten Tije, Albert J; Vreugdenhil, Gerard; Wouters, Michel W J M; van Zeijl, Michiel; Haanen, John B A G; Uyl-de Groot, Carin A

2018-07-01

There is limited evidence on the costs associated with ipilimumab. We investigated healthcare costs of all Dutch patients with advanced cutaneous melanoma who were treated with ipilimumab. Data were retrieved from the nation-wide Dutch Melanoma Treatment Registry. Costs were determined by applying unit costs to individual patient resource use. A total of 807 patients who were diagnosed between July 2012 and July 2015 received ipilimumab in Dutch practice. The mean (median) episode duration was 6.27 (4.61) months (computed from the start of ipilimumab until the start of a next treatment, death, or the last date of follow-up). The average total healthcare costs amounted to &OV0556;81 484, but varied widely (range: &OV0556;18 131-&OV0556;160 002). Ipilimumab was by far the most important cost driver (&OV0556;73 739). Other costs were related to hospital admissions (&OV0556;3323), hospital visits (&OV0556;1791), diagnostics and imaging (&OV0556;1505), radiotherapy (&OV0556;828), and surgery (&OV0556;297). Monthly costs for resource use other than ipilimumab were &OV0556;1997 (SD: &OV0556;2629). Treatment-naive patients (n=344) had higher total costs compared with previously-treated patients (n=463; &OV0556;85 081 vs. &OV0556;78 811). Although patients with colitis (n=106) had higher costs for resource use other than ipilimumab (&OV0556;11 426) compared with patients with other types of immune-related adverse events (n=90; &OV0556;9850) and patients with no immune-related adverse event (n=611; &OV0556;6796), they had lower total costs (&OV0556;76 075 vs. &OV0556;87 882 and &OV0556;81 480, respectively). In conclusion, this nation-wide study provides valuable insights into the healthcare costs of advanced cutaneous melanoma patients who were treated with ipilimumab in clinical practice. Most of the costs were attributable to ipilimumab, but the costs and its distribution varied considerably across subgroups.

Effect of costing methods on unit cost of hospital medical services.

PubMed

Riewpaiboon, Arthorn; Malaroje, Saranya; Kongsawatt, Sukalaya

2007-04-01

To explore the variance of unit costs of hospital medical services due to different costing methods employed in the analysis. Retrospective and descriptive study at Kaengkhoi District Hospital, Saraburi Province, Thailand, in the fiscal year 2002. The process started with a calculation of unit costs of medical services as a base case. After that, the unit costs were re-calculated based on various methods. Finally, the variations of the results obtained from various methods and the base case were computed and compared. The total annualized capital cost of buildings and capital items calculated by the accounting-based approach (averaging the capital purchase prices throughout their useful life) was 13.02% lower than that calculated by the economic-based approach (combination of depreciation cost and interest on undepreciated portion over the useful life). A change of discount rate from 3% to 6% results in a 4.76% increase of the hospital's total annualized capital cost. When the useful life of durable goods was changed from 5 to 10 years, the total annualized capital cost of the hospital decreased by 17.28% from that of the base case. Regarding alternative criteria of indirect cost allocation, unit cost of medical services changed by a range of -6.99% to +4.05%. We explored the effect on unit cost of medical services in one department. Various costing methods, including departmental allocation methods, ranged between -85% and +32% against those of the base case. Based on the variation analysis, the economic-based approach was suitable for capital cost calculation. For the useful life of capital items, appropriate duration should be studied and standardized. Regarding allocation criteria, single-output criteria might be more efficient than the combined-output and complicated ones. For the departmental allocation methods, micro-costing method was the most suitable method at the time of study. These different costing methods should be standardized and developed as guidelines since they could affect implementation of the national health insurance scheme and health financing management.

Impact of an Advanced Imaging Utilization Review Program on Downstream Health Care Utilization and Costs for Low Back Pain.

PubMed

Graves, Janessa M; Fulton-Kehoe, Deborah; Jarvik, Jeffrey G; Franklin, Gary M

2018-06-01

Early magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) for acute low back pain (LBP) has been associated with increased costs, greater health care utilization, and longer disability duration in workers' compensation claimants. To assess the impact of a state policy implemented in June 2010 that required prospective utilization review (UR) for early MRI among workers' compensation claimants with LBP. Interrupted time series. In total, 76,119 Washington State workers' compensation claimants with LBP between 2006 and 2014. Proportion of workers receiving imaging per month (MRI, computed tomography, radiographs) and lumbosacral injections and surgery; mean total health care costs per worker; mean duration of disability per worker. Measures were aggregated monthly and attributed to injury month. After accounting for secular trends, decreases in early MRI [level change: -5.27 (95% confidence interval, -4.22 to -6.31); trend change: -0.06 (-0.01 to -0.12)], any MRI [-4.34 (-3.01 to -5.67); -0.10 (-0.04 to -0.17)], and injection [trend change: -0.12 (-0.06 to -0.18)] utilization were associated with the policy. Radiograph utilization increased in parallel [level change: 2.46 (1.24-3.67)]. In addition, the policy resulted in significant decreasing changes in mean costs per claim, mean disability duration, and proportion of workers who received disability benefits. The policy had no effect on computed tomography or surgery utilization. The UR policy had discernable effects on health care utilization, costs, and disability. Integrating evidence-based guidelines with UR can improve quality of care and patient outcomes, while reducing use of low-value health services.

Unequal-area, fixed-shape facility layout problems using the firefly algorithm

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ingole, Supriya; Singh, Dinesh

2017-07-01

In manufacturing industries, the facility layout design is a very important task, as it is concerned with the overall manufacturing cost and profit of the industry. The facility layout problem (FLP) is solved by arranging the departments or facilities of known dimensions on the available floor space. The objective of this article is to implement the firefly algorithm (FA) for solving unequal-area, fixed-shape FLPs and optimizing the costs of total material handling and transportation between the facilities. The FA is a nature-inspired algorithm and can be used for combinatorial optimization problems. Benchmark problems from the previous literature are solved using the FA. To check its effectiveness, it is implemented to solve large-sized FLPs. Computational results obtained using the FA show that the algorithm is less time consuming and the total layout costs for FLPs are better than the best results achieved so far.

Trans-African Hydro-Meteorological Observatory

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

van de Giesen, N.; Andreini, M.; Selker, J.

2009-04-01

Our computing capacity to model hydrological processes is such that we can readily model every hectare of the globe's surface in real time. Satellites provide us with important state observations that allow us to calibrate our models and estimate model errors. Still, ground observations will remain necessary to obtain data that can not readily be observed from space. Hydro-Meteorological data availability is particularly scarce in Africa. This presentation launches a simple idea by which Africa can leapfrog into a new era of closely knit environmental observation networks. The basic idea is the design of a robust measurement station, based on the smart use of new sensors without moving parts. For example, instead of using a Eu 5000 long-wave pyrgeometer, a factory calibrated IR microwave oven sensor is used that costs less than Eu 10. In total, each station should cost Eu 200 or less. Every 30 km, one station will be installed, being equivalent to 20,000 stations for all of sub-Saharan Africa. The roll-out will follow the XO project ("100 computer") and focus on high schools. The stations will be accompanied by an educational package that allows high school children to learn about their environment, measurements, electronics, and mathematical modeling. Total program costs lie around MEu 18.

The role of radiation hard solar cells in minimizing the costs of global satellite communication systems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Summers, Geoffrey P.; Walters, Robert J.; Messenger, Scott R.; Burke, Edward A.

1996-01-01

An analysis embodied in a PC computer program is presented, which quantitatively demonstrates how the availability of radiation hard solar cells can help minimize the cost of a global satellite communications system. An important distinction between the currently proposed systems, such as Iridium, Odyssey and Ellipsat, is the number of satellites employed and their operating altitudes. Analysis of the major costs associated with implementing these systems shows that operation at orbital altitudes within the earth's radiation belts (10(exp 3) to 10(exp 4)km) can reduce the total cost of a system by several hundred percent, so long as radiation hard components including solar cells can be used. A detailed evaluation of the predicted performance of photovoltaic arrays using several different planar solar cell technologies is given, including commercially available Si and GaAs/Ge, and InP/Si which is currently under development. Several examples of applying the program are given, which show that the end of life (EOL) power density of different technologies can vary by a factor of ten for certain missions. Therefore, although a relatively radiation-soft technology can usually provide the required EOL power by simply increasing the size of the array, the impact upon the total system budget could be unacceptable, due to increased launch and hardware costs. In aggregate, these factors can account for more than a 10% increase in the total system cost. Since the estimated total costs of proposed global-coverage systems range from $1B to $9B, the availability of radiation-hard solar cells could make a decisive difference in the selection of a particular constellation architecture.

Herd-Level Mastitis-Associated Costs on Canadian Dairy Farms

PubMed Central

Aghamohammadi, Mahjoob; Haine, Denis; Kelton, David F.; Barkema, Herman W.; Hogeveen, Henk; Keefe, Gregory P.; Dufour, Simon

2018-01-01

Mastitis imposes considerable and recurring economic losses on the dairy industry worldwide. The main objective of this study was to estimate herd-level costs incurred by expenditures and production losses associated with mastitis on Canadian dairy farms in 2015, based on producer reports. Previously, published mastitis economic frameworks were used to develop an economic model with the most important cost components. Components investigated were divided between clinical mastitis (CM), subclinical mastitis (SCM), and other costs components (i.e., preventive measures and product quality). A questionnaire was mailed to 374 dairy producers randomly selected from the (Canadian National Dairy Study 2015) to collect data on these costs components, and 145 dairy producers returned a completed questionnaire. For each herd, costs due to the different mastitis-related components were computed by applying the values reported by the dairy producer to the developed economic model. Then, for each herd, a proportion of the costs attributable to a specific component was computed by dividing absolute costs for this component by total herd mastitis-related costs. Median self-reported CM incidence was 19 cases/100 cow-year and mean self-reported bulk milk somatic cell count was 184,000 cells/mL. Most producers reported using post-milking teat disinfection (97%) and dry cow therapy (93%), and a substantial proportion of producers reported using pre-milking teat disinfection (79%) and wearing gloves during milking (77%). Mastitis costs were substantial (662 CAD per milking cow per year for a typical Canadian dairy farm), with a large portion of the costs (48%) being attributed to SCM, and 34 and 15% due to CM and implementation of preventive measures, respectively. For SCM, the two most important cost components were the subsequent milk yield reduction and culling (72 and 25% of SCM costs, respectively). For CM, first, second, and third most important cost components were culling (48% of CM costs), milk yield reduction following the CM events (34%), and discarded milk (11%), respectively. This study is the first since 1990 to investigate costs of mastitis in Canada. The model developed in the current study can be used to compute mastitis costs at the herd and national level in Canada. PMID:29868620

[Cost-benefit analysis of cranial computed tomography in mild traumatic brain injury--appropriate depiction within the G-DRG system?].

PubMed

Garving, C; Weber, C D; Poßelt, S; Pishnamaz, M; Pape, H C; Dienstknecht, T

2014-06-01

The treatment of patients with mild head injury is related to a continuous lack of finances. The current investigation summarises radiological costs of patients from a level I trauma centre and discusses the indication for CT scanning within the G-DRG system. The study includes all patients who underwent a CCT scan in 2011. Diagnosis, length of stay and cost data were recorded for every patient. Finally, frequent diagnosis groups were summarised to clusters (Basis-DRG/MDC 21A). A total of 380 patients was treated. Within the largest group (G-DRG B80Z) the costs for a CCT already took up one quarter of the total proceedings. In combination with the high cost for monitoring patients with mild head injuries this causes an ongoing lack of finances. In spite of the often necessary CCT investigation in mild head injuries, the earnings do not cover the costs of the patients. To improve the situation clear guidelines for CCT scanning should be provided and the reimbursement in particular in the diagnosis group of the G-DRG B80Z has to be improved. Georg Thieme Verlag KG Stuttgart · New York.

A fast dynamic grid adaption scheme for meteorological flows

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

Fiedler, B.H.; Trapp, R.J.

1993-10-01

The continuous dynamic grid adaption (CDGA) technique is applied to a compressible, three-dimensional model of a rising thermal. The computational cost, per grid point per time step, of using CDGA instead of a fixed, uniform Cartesian grid is about 53% of the total cost of the model with CDGA. The use of general curvilinear coordinates contributes 11.7% to this total, calculating and moving the grid 6.1%, and continually updating the transformation relations 20.7%. Costs due to calculations that involve the gridpoint velocities (as well as some substantial unexplained costs) contribute the remaining 14.5%. A simple way to limit the costmore » of calculating the grid is presented. The grid is adapted by solving an elliptic equation for gridpoint coordinates on a coarse grid and then interpolating the full finite-difference grid. In this application, the additional costs per grid point of CDGA are shown to be easily offset by the savings resulting from the reduction in the required number of grid points. In simulation of the thermal costs are reduced by a factor of 3, as compared with those of a companion model with a fixed, uniform Cartesian grid. 8 refs., 8 figs.« less

Assessing the Utilization of Total Ankle Replacement in the United States.

PubMed

Reddy, Sudheer; Koenig, Lane; Demiralp, Berna; Nguyen, Jennifer T; Zhang, Qian

2017-06-01

Total ankle arthroplasty (TAR) has been shown to be a cost-effective procedure relative to conservative management and ankle arthrodesis. Although its use has grown considerably over the last 2 decades, it is less common than arthrodesis. The purpose of this investigation was to analyze the cost and utilization of TAR across hospitals. Our analytical sample consisted of Medicare claims data from 2011 and 2012 for Inpatient Prospective Payment System hospitals. Outcome variables of interest were the likelihood of a hospital performing TAR, the volume of TAR cases, TAR hospital costs, and hospital profit margins. Data from the 2010 Cost Report and Medicare inpatient claims were utilized to compute average margins for TAR cases and overall hospital margins. TAR cost was calculated based on the all payer cost-to-charge ratio for each hospital in the Cost Report. Nationwide Inpatient Sample data were used to generate descriptive statistics on all TAR patients across payers. Medicare participants accounted for 47.5% of the overall population of TAR patients. Average implant cost was $13 034, accounting for approximately 70% of the total all-payer cost. Approximately, one-third of hospitals were profitable with respect to primary TAR. Profitable hospitals had lower total costs and higher payments leading to a difference in profit of approximately $11 000 from TAR surgeries between profitable and nonprofitable hospitals. No difference was noted with respect to length of stay or number of cases performed between profitable and nonprofitable hospitals. TAR surgeries were more likely to take place in large and major teaching hospitals. Among hospitals performing at least 1 TAR, the margin on TAR cases was positively associated with the total number of TARs performed by a hospital. There is an overall significant financial burden associated with performing TAR with many health systems failing to demonstrate profitability despite its increased utilization. While additional factors such as improved patient outcomes may be driving utilization of TAR, financial barriers may exist that can affect utilization of TAR across health systems. Level III, comparative study.

Information transfer satellite concept study. Volume 4: computer manual

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bergin, P.; Kincade, C.; Kurpiewski, D.; Leinhaupel, F.; Millican, F.; Onstad, R.

1971-01-01

The Satellite Telecommunications Analysis and Modeling Program (STAMP) provides the user with a flexible and comprehensive tool for the analysis of ITS system requirements. While obtaining minimum cost design points, the program enables the user to perform studies over a wide range of user requirements and parametric demands. The program utilizes a total system approach wherein the ground uplink and downlink, the spacecraft, and the launch vehicle are simultaneously synthesized. A steepest descent algorithm is employed to determine the minimum total system cost design subject to the fixed user requirements and imposed constraints. In the process of converging to the solution, the pertinent subsystem tradeoffs are resolved. This report documents STAMP through a technical analysis and a description of the principal techniques employed in the program.

Analysis of the economics of photovoltaic-diesel-battery energy systems for remote applications

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Brainard, W. A.

1983-01-01

Computer simulations were conducted to analyze the performance and operating cost of a photovoltaic energy source combined with a diesel generator system and battery storage. The simulations were based on the load demand profiles used for the design of an all photovoltaic energy system installed in the remote Papago Indian Village of Schuchuli, Arizona. Twenty year simulations were run using solar insolation data from Phoenix SOLMET tapes. Total energy produced, energy consumed, operation and maintenance costs were calculated. The life cycle and levelized energy costs were determined for a variety of system configurations (i.e., varying amounts of photovoltaic array and battery storage).

Direct costs and cost-effectiveness of dual-source computed tomography and invasive coronary angiography in patients with an intermediate pretest likelihood for coronary artery disease.

PubMed

Dorenkamp, Marc; Bonaventura, Klaus; Sohns, Christian; Becker, Christoph R; Leber, Alexander W

2012-03-01

The study aims to determine the direct costs and comparative cost-effectiveness of latest-generation dual-source computed tomography (DSCT) and invasive coronary angiography for diagnosing coronary artery disease (CAD) in patients suspected of having this disease. The study was based on a previously elaborated cohort with an intermediate pretest likelihood for CAD and on complementary clinical data. Cost calculations were based on a detailed analysis of direct costs, and generally accepted accounting principles were applied. Based on Bayes' theorem, a mathematical model was used to compare the cost-effectiveness of both diagnostic approaches. Total costs included direct costs, induced costs and costs of complications. Effectiveness was defined as the ability of a diagnostic test to accurately identify a patient with CAD. Direct costs amounted to €98.60 for DSCT and to €317.75 for invasive coronary angiography. Analysis of model calculations indicated that cost-effectiveness grew hyperbolically with increasing prevalence of CAD. Given the prevalence of CAD in the study cohort (24%), DSCT was found to be more cost-effective than invasive coronary angiography (€970 vs €1354 for one patient correctly diagnosed as having CAD). At a disease prevalence of 49%, DSCT and invasive angiography were equally effective with costs of €633. Above a threshold value of disease prevalence of 55%, proceeding directly to invasive coronary angiography was more cost-effective than DSCT. With proper patient selection and consideration of disease prevalence, DSCT coronary angiography is cost-effective for diagnosing CAD in patients with an intermediate pretest likelihood for it. However, the range of eligible patients may be smaller than previously reported.

A hydrological emulator for global applications - HE v1.0.0

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liu, Yaling; Hejazi, Mohamad; Li, Hongyi; Zhang, Xuesong; Leng, Guoyong

2018-03-01

While global hydrological models (GHMs) are very useful in exploring water resources and interactions between the Earth and human systems, their use often requires numerous model inputs, complex model calibration, and high computation costs. To overcome these challenges, we construct an efficient open-source and ready-to-use hydrological emulator (HE) that can mimic complex GHMs at a range of spatial scales (e.g., basin, region, globe). More specifically, we construct both a lumped and a distributed scheme of the HE based on the monthly abcd model to explore the tradeoff between computational cost and model fidelity. Model predictability and computational efficiency are evaluated in simulating global runoff from 1971 to 2010 with both the lumped and distributed schemes. The results are compared against the runoff product from the widely used Variable Infiltration Capacity (VIC) model. Our evaluation indicates that the lumped and distributed schemes present comparable results regarding annual total quantity, spatial pattern, and temporal variation of the major water fluxes (e.g., total runoff, evapotranspiration) across the global 235 basins (e.g., correlation coefficient r between the annual total runoff from either of these two schemes and the VIC is > 0.96), except for several cold (e.g., Arctic, interior Tibet), dry (e.g., North Africa) and mountainous (e.g., Argentina) regions. Compared against the monthly total runoff product from the VIC (aggregated from daily runoff), the global mean Kling-Gupta efficiencies are 0.75 and 0.79 for the lumped and distributed schemes, respectively, with the distributed scheme better capturing spatial heterogeneity. Notably, the computation efficiency of the lumped scheme is 2 orders of magnitude higher than the distributed one and 7 orders more efficient than the VIC model. A case study of uncertainty analysis for the world's 16 basins with top annual streamflow is conducted using 100 000 model simulations, and it demonstrates the lumped scheme's extraordinary advantage in computational efficiency. Our results suggest that the revised lumped abcd model can serve as an efficient and reasonable HE for complex GHMs and is suitable for broad practical use, and the distributed scheme is also an efficient alternative if spatial heterogeneity is of more interest.

Three Approaches to Green Computing on Campus

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Thompson, John T.

2009-01-01

A "carbon footprint" is the "total set of greenhouse gas emissions caused directly and indirectly by an (individual, event, organization, and product) expressed as CO2" emissions. Since CO2 emissions are indicative of energy use, the higher the associated CO2 emissions, typically the greater the associated costs. A typical desktop PC system…

26 CFR 1.460-4 - Methods of accounting for long-term contracts.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

... (CCM), which is one of the permissible methods of accounting for exempt construction contracts... computing taxable income. (3) Post-completion-year income. If a taxpayer has not included the total contract... completion year. For the treatment of post-completion-year costs, see paragraph (b)(5)(v) of this section...

26 CFR 1.460-4 - Methods of accounting for long-term contracts.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... (CCM), which is one of the permissible methods of accounting for exempt construction contracts... computing taxable income. (3) Post-completion-year income. If a taxpayer has not included the total contract... completion year. For the treatment of post-completion-year costs, see paragraph (b)(5)(v) of this section...

26 CFR 1.460-4 - Methods of accounting for long-term contracts.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

... (CCM), which is one of the permissible methods of accounting for exempt construction contracts... computing taxable income. (3) Post-completion-year income. If a taxpayer has not included the total contract... completion year. For the treatment of post-completion-year costs, see paragraph (b)(5)(v) of this section...

26 CFR 1.460-4 - Methods of accounting for long-term contracts.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... (CCM), which is one of the permissible methods of accounting for exempt construction contracts... computing taxable income. (3) Post-completion-year income. If a taxpayer has not included the total contract... completion year. For the treatment of post-completion-year costs, see paragraph (b)(5)(v) of this section...

26 CFR 1.460-4 - Methods of accounting for long-term contracts.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... (CCM), which is one of the permissible methods of accounting for exempt construction contracts... computing taxable income. (3) Post-completion-year income. If a taxpayer has not included the total contract... completion year. For the treatment of post-completion-year costs, see paragraph (b)(5)(v) of this section...

Quality Teaching in Mathematics

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ediger, Marlow

2012-01-01

The best teaching possible needs to accrue in the mathematics curriculum. Pupils also need to become proficient in using mathematics in every day situations in life. Individuals buy goods and services. They pay for these in different ways, including cash. Here, persons need to be able to compute the total cost of items purchased and then pay for…

Cost-Effective Mobile-Based Healthcare System for Managing Total Joint Arthroplasty Follow-Up.

PubMed

Bitsaki, Marina; Koutras, George; Heep, Hansjoerg; Koutras, Christos

2017-01-01

Long-term follow-up care after total joint arthroplasty is essential to evaluate hip and knee arthroplasty outcomes, to provide information to physicians and improve arthroplasty performance, and to improve patients' health condition. In this paper, we aim to improve the communication between arthroplasty patients and physicians and to reduce the cost of follow-up controls based on mobile application technologies and cloud computing. We propose a mobile-based healthcare system that provides cost-effective follow-up controls for primary arthroplasty patients through questions about symptoms in the replaced joint, questionnaires (WOMAC and SF-36v2) and the radiological examination of knee or hip joint. We also perform a cost analysis for a set of 423 patients that were treated in the University Clinic for Orthopedics in Essen-Werden. The estimation of healthcare costs shows significant cost savings (a reduction of 63.67% for readmission rate 5%) in both the University Clinic for Orthopedics in Essen-Werden and the state of North Rhine-Westphalia when the mobile-based healthcare system is applied. We propose a mHealth system to reduce the cost of follow-up assessments of arthroplasty patients through evaluation of diagnosis, self-monitoring, and regular review of their health status.

Valuing the Economic Costs of Allergic Rhinitis, Acute Bronchitis, and Asthma from Exposure to Indoor Dampness and Mold in the US

PubMed Central

2016-01-01

Two foundational methods for estimating the total economic burden of disease are cost of illness (COI) and willingness to pay (WTP). WTP measures the full cost to society, but WTP estimates are difficult to compute and rarely available. COI methods are more often used but less likely to reflect full costs. This paper attempts to estimate the full economic cost (2014$) of illnesses resulting from exposure to dampness and mold using COI methods and WTP where the data is available. A limited sensitivity analysis of alternative methods and assumptions demonstrates a wide potential range of estimates. In the final estimates, the total annual cost to society attributable to dampness and mold is estimated to be $3.7 (2.3–4.7) billion for allergic rhinitis, $1.9 (1.1–2.3) billion for acute bronchitis, $15.1 (9.4–20.6) billion for asthma morbidity, and $1.7 (0.4–4.5) billion for asthma mortality. The corresponding costs from all causes, not limited to dampness and mold, using the same approach would be $24.8 billion for allergic rhinitis, $13.5 billion for acute bronchitis, $94.5 billion for asthma morbidity, and $10.8 billion for asthma mortality. PMID:27313630

Economic evaluation of alternative crossbreeding systems involving four breeds of swine. I. The simulation model.

PubMed

McLaren, D G; Buchanan, D S; Williams, J E

1987-10-01

A static, deterministic computer model, programmed in Microsoft Basic for IBM PC and Apple Macintosh computers, was developed to calculate production efficiency (cost per kg of product) for nine alternative types of crossbreeding system involving four breeds of swine. The model simulates efficiencies for four purebred and 60 alternative two-, three- and four-breed rotation, rotaterminal, backcross and static cross systems. Crossbreeding systems were defined as including all purebred, crossbred and commercial matings necessary to maintain a total of 10,000 farrowings. Driving variables for the model are mean conception rate at first service and for an 8-wk breeding season, litter size born, preweaning survival rate, postweaning average daily gain, feed-to-gain ratio and carcass backfat. Predictions are computed using breed direct genetic and maternal effects for the four breeds, plus individual, maternal and paternal specific heterosis values, input by the user. Inputs required to calculate the number of females farrowing in each sub-system include the proportion of males and females replaced each breeding cycle in purebred and crossbred populations, the proportion of male and female offspring in seedstock herds that become breeding animals, and the number of females per boar. Inputs required to calculate the efficiency of terminal production (cost-to-product ratio) for each sub-system include breeding herd feed intake, gilt development costs, feed costs and labor and overhead costs. Crossbreeding system efficiency is calculated as the weighted average of sub-system cost-to-product ratio values, weighting by the number of females farrowing in each sub-system.

Multi-Scale Modeling to Improve Single-Molecule, Single-Cell Experiments

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Munsky, Brian; Shepherd, Douglas

2014-03-01

Single-cell, single-molecule experiments are producing an unprecedented amount of data to capture the dynamics of biological systems. When integrated with computational models, observations of spatial, temporal and stochastic fluctuations can yield powerful quantitative insight. We concentrate on experiments that localize and count individual molecules of mRNA. These high precision experiments have large imaging and computational processing costs, and we explore how improved computational analyses can dramatically reduce overall data requirements. In particular, we show how analyses of spatial, temporal and stochastic fluctuations can significantly enhance parameter estimation results for small, noisy data sets. We also show how full probability distribution analyses can constrain parameters with far less data than bulk analyses or statistical moment closures. Finally, we discuss how a systematic modeling progression from simple to more complex analyses can reduce total computational costs by orders of magnitude. We illustrate our approach using single-molecule, spatial mRNA measurements of Interleukin 1-alpha mRNA induction in human THP1 cells following stimulation. Our approach could improve the effectiveness of single-molecule gene regulation analyses for many other process.

Computational techniques for design optimization of thermal protection systems for the space shuttle vehicle. Volume 1: Final report

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1971-01-01

Computational techniques were developed and assimilated for the design optimization. The resulting computer program was then used to perform initial optimization and sensitivity studies on a typical thermal protection system (TPS) to demonstrate its application to the space shuttle TPS design. The program was developed in Fortran IV for the CDC 6400 but was subsequently converted to the Fortran V language to be used on the Univac 1108. The program allows for improvement and update of the performance prediction techniques. The program logic involves subroutines which handle the following basic functions: (1) a driver which calls for input, output, and communication between program and user and between the subroutines themselves; (2) thermodynamic analysis; (3) thermal stress analysis; (4) acoustic fatigue analysis; and (5) weights/cost analysis. In addition, a system total cost is predicted based on system weight and historical cost data of similar systems. Two basic types of input are provided, both of which are based on trajectory data. These are vehicle attitude (altitude, velocity, and angles of attack and sideslip), for external heat and pressure loads calculation, and heating rates and pressure loads as a function of time.

Global Economic Burden of Norovirus Gastroenteritis

PubMed Central

Bartsch, Sarah M.; Lopman, Benjamin A.; Ozawa, Sachiko; Hall, Aron J.; Lee, Bruce Y.

2016-01-01

Background Despite accounting for approximately one fifth of all acute gastroenteritis illnesses, norovirus has received comparatively less attention than other infectious pathogens. With several candidate vaccines under development, characterizing the global economic burden of norovirus could help funders, policy makers, public health officials, and product developers determine how much attention and resources to allocate to advancing these technologies to prevent and control norovirus. Methods We developed a computational simulation model to estimate the economic burden of norovirus in every country/area (233 total) stratified by WHO region and globally, from the health system and societal perspectives. We considered direct costs of illness (e.g., clinic visits and hospitalization) and productivity losses. Results Globally, norovirus resulted in a total of $4.2 billion (95% UI: $3.2–5.7 billion) in direct health system costs and $60.3 billion (95% UI: $44.4–83.4 billion) in societal costs per year. Disease amongst children <5 years cost society $39.8 billion, compared to $20.4 billion for all other age groups combined. Costs per norovirus illness varied by both region and age and was highest among adults ≥55 years. Productivity losses represented 84–99% of total costs varying by region. While low and middle income countries and high income countries had similar disease incidence (10,148 vs. 9,935 illness per 100,000 persons), high income countries generated 62% of global health system costs. In sensitivity analysis, the probability of hospitalization had the largest impact on health system cost estimates ($2.8 billion globally, assuming no hospitalization costs), while the probability of missing productive days had the largest impact on societal cost estimates ($35.9 billion globally, with a 25% probability of missing productive days). Conclusions The total economic burden is greatest in young children but the highest cost per illness is among older age groups in some regions. These large costs overwhelmingly are from productivity losses resulting from acute illness. Low, middle, and high income countries all have a considerable economic burden, suggesting that norovirus gastroenteritis is a truly global economic problem. Our findings can help identify which age group(s) and/or geographic regions may benefit the most from interventions. PMID:27115736

Global Economic Burden of Norovirus Gastroenteritis.

PubMed

Bartsch, Sarah M; Lopman, Benjamin A; Ozawa, Sachiko; Hall, Aron J; Lee, Bruce Y

2016-01-01

Despite accounting for approximately one fifth of all acute gastroenteritis illnesses, norovirus has received comparatively less attention than other infectious pathogens. With several candidate vaccines under development, characterizing the global economic burden of norovirus could help funders, policy makers, public health officials, and product developers determine how much attention and resources to allocate to advancing these technologies to prevent and control norovirus. We developed a computational simulation model to estimate the economic burden of norovirus in every country/area (233 total) stratified by WHO region and globally, from the health system and societal perspectives. We considered direct costs of illness (e.g., clinic visits and hospitalization) and productivity losses. Globally, norovirus resulted in a total of $4.2 billion (95% UI: $3.2-5.7 billion) in direct health system costs and $60.3 billion (95% UI: $44.4-83.4 billion) in societal costs per year. Disease amongst children <5 years cost society $39.8 billion, compared to $20.4 billion for all other age groups combined. Costs per norovirus illness varied by both region and age and was highest among adults ≥55 years. Productivity losses represented 84-99% of total costs varying by region. While low and middle income countries and high income countries had similar disease incidence (10,148 vs. 9,935 illness per 100,000 persons), high income countries generated 62% of global health system costs. In sensitivity analysis, the probability of hospitalization had the largest impact on health system cost estimates ($2.8 billion globally, assuming no hospitalization costs), while the probability of missing productive days had the largest impact on societal cost estimates ($35.9 billion globally, with a 25% probability of missing productive days). The total economic burden is greatest in young children but the highest cost per illness is among older age groups in some regions. These large costs overwhelmingly are from productivity losses resulting from acute illness. Low, middle, and high income countries all have a considerable economic burden, suggesting that norovirus gastroenteritis is a truly global economic problem. Our findings can help identify which age group(s) and/or geographic regions may benefit the most from interventions.

Cost-effectiveness analysis of computerized ECG interpretation system in an ambulatory health care organization.

PubMed

Carel, R S

1982-04-01

The cost-effectiveness of a computerized ECG interpretation system in an ambulatory health care organization has been evaluated in comparison with a conventional (manual) system. The automated system was shown to be more cost-effective at a minimum load of 2,500 patients/month. At larger monthly loads an even greater cost-effectiveness was found, the average cost/ECG being about $2. In the manual system the cost/unit is practically independent of patient load. This is primarily due to the fact that 87% of the cost/ECG is attributable to wages and fees of highly trained personnel. In the automated system, on the other hand, the cost/ECG is heavily dependent on examinee load. This is due to the relatively large impact of equipment depreciation on fixed (and total) cost. Utilization of a computer-assisted system leads to marked reduction in cardiologists' interpretation time, substantially shorter turnaround time (of unconfirmed reports), and potential provision of simultaneous service at several remotely located "heart stations."

Performance simulation for the design of solar heating and cooling systems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Mccormick, P. O.

1975-01-01

Suitable approaches for evaluating the performance and the cost of a solar heating and cooling system are considered, taking into account the value of a computer simulation concerning the entire system in connection with the large number of parameters involved. Operational relations concerning the collector efficiency in the case of a new improved collector and a reference collector are presented in a graph. Total costs for solar and conventional heating, ventilation, and air conditioning systems as a function of time are shown in another graph.

Looking at Earth from space

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1994-01-01

This vendor equipment list was developed with NASA funding by the Dallas Remote Imaging Group (DRIG) and the Maryland Pilot Earth Science and Technology Education Network (MAPS-NET) project as a reference guide to low-cost ground station equipment for direct readout, the capability to acquire information directly from environmental satellites. Products were tested with the following standards in mind: ease of use; user friendliness and completeness of manual and instructions; total system cost for computer, geostationary operational environmental satellites (GOES), and automatic picture transmission (APT) capability under $4000; and vendor stability in the industry.

Developing Subdomain Allocation Algorithms Based on Spatial and Communicational Constraints to Accelerate Dust Storm Simulation

PubMed Central

Gui, Zhipeng; Yu, Manzhu; Yang, Chaowei; Jiang, Yunfeng; Chen, Songqing; Xia, Jizhe; Huang, Qunying; Liu, Kai; Li, Zhenlong; Hassan, Mohammed Anowarul; Jin, Baoxuan

2016-01-01

Dust storm has serious disastrous impacts on environment, human health, and assets. The developments and applications of dust storm models have contributed significantly to better understand and predict the distribution, intensity and structure of dust storms. However, dust storm simulation is a data and computing intensive process. To improve the computing performance, high performance computing has been widely adopted by dividing the entire study area into multiple subdomains and allocating each subdomain on different computing nodes in a parallel fashion. Inappropriate allocation may introduce imbalanced task loads and unnecessary communications among computing nodes. Therefore, allocation is a key factor that may impact the efficiency of parallel process. An allocation algorithm is expected to consider the computing cost and communication cost for each computing node to minimize total execution time and reduce overall communication cost for the entire simulation. This research introduces three algorithms to optimize the allocation by considering the spatial and communicational constraints: 1) an Integer Linear Programming (ILP) based algorithm from combinational optimization perspective; 2) a K-Means and Kernighan-Lin combined heuristic algorithm (K&K) integrating geometric and coordinate-free methods by merging local and global partitioning; 3) an automatic seeded region growing based geometric and local partitioning algorithm (ASRG). The performance and effectiveness of the three algorithms are compared based on different factors. Further, we adopt the K&K algorithm as the demonstrated algorithm for the experiment of dust model simulation with the non-hydrostatic mesoscale model (NMM-dust) and compared the performance with the MPI default sequential allocation. The results demonstrate that K&K method significantly improves the simulation performance with better subdomain allocation. This method can also be adopted for other relevant atmospheric and numerical modeling. PMID:27044039

A medical cost estimation with fuzzy neural network of acute hepatitis patients in emergency room.

PubMed

Kuo, R J; Cheng, W C; Lien, W C; Yang, T J

2015-10-01

Taiwan is an area where chronic hepatitis is endemic. Liver cancer is so common that it has been ranked first among cancer mortality rates since the early 1980s in Taiwan. Besides, liver cirrhosis and chronic liver diseases are the sixth or seventh in the causes of death. Therefore, as shown by the active research on hepatitis, it is not only a health threat, but also a huge medical cost for the government. The estimated total number of hepatitis B carriers in the general population aged more than 20 years old is 3,067,307. Thus, a case record review was conducted from all patients with diagnosis of acute hepatitis admitted to the Emergency Department (ED) of a well-known teaching-oriented hospital in Taipei. The cost of medical resource utilization is defined as the total medical fee. In this study, a fuzzy neural network is employed to develop the cost forecasting model. A total of 110 patients met the inclusion criteria. The computational results indicate that the FNN model can provide more accurate forecasts than the support vector regression (SVR) or artificial neural network (ANN). In addition, unlike SVR and ANN, FNN can also provide fuzzy IF-THEN rules for interpretation. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

[Monetary value of the human costs of road traffic injuries in Spain].

PubMed

Martínez Pérez, Jorge Eduardo; Sánchez Martínez, Fernando Ignacio; Abellán Perpiñán, José María; Pinto Prades, José Luis

2015-09-01

Cost-benefit analyses in the field of road safety compute human costs as a key component of total costs. The present article presents two studies promoted by the Directorate-General for Traffic aimed at obtaining official values for the costs associated with fatal and non-fatal traffic injuries in Spain. We combined the contingent valuation approach and the (modified) standard gamble technique in two surveys administered to large representative samples (n1=2,020, n2=2,000) of the Spanish population. The monetary value of preventing a fatality was estimated to be 1.4 million euros. Values of 219,000 and 6,100 euros were obtained for minor and severe non-fatal injuries, respectively. These figures are comparable to those observed in neighboring countries. Copyright © 2014 SESPAS. Published by Elsevier Espana. All rights reserved.

Resource Provisioning in SLA-Based Cluster Computing

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Xiong, Kaiqi; Suh, Sang

Cluster computing is excellent for parallel computation. It has become increasingly popular. In cluster computing, a service level agreement (SLA) is a set of quality of services (QoS) and a fee agreed between a customer and an application service provider. It plays an important role in an e-business application. An application service provider uses a set of cluster computing resources to support e-business applications subject to an SLA. In this paper, the QoS includes percentile response time and cluster utilization. We present an approach for resource provisioning in such an environment that minimizes the total cost of cluster computing resources used by an application service provider for an e-business application that often requires parallel computation for high service performance, availability, and reliability while satisfying a QoS and a fee negotiated between a customer and the application service provider. Simulation experiments demonstrate the applicability of the approach.

A partial economic evaluation of blended learning in teaching health research methods: a three-university collaboration in South Africa, Sweden, and Uganda

PubMed Central

Kumpu, Minna; Atkins, Salla; Zwarenstein, Merrick; Nkonki, Lungiswa

2016-01-01

Background Novel research training approaches are needed in global health, particularly in sub-Saharan African universities, to support strengthening of health systems and services. Blended learning (BL), combining face-to-face teaching with computer-based technologies, is also an accessible and flexible education method for teaching global health and related topics. When organised as inter-institutional collaboration, BL also has potential for sharing teaching resources. However, there is insufficient data on the costs of BL in higher education. Objective Our goal was to evaluate the total provider costs of BL in teaching health research methods in a three-university collaboration. Design A retrospective evaluation was performed on a BL course on randomised controlled trials, which was led by Stellenbosch University (SU) in South Africa and joined by Swedish and Ugandan universities. For all three universities, the costs of the BL course were evaluated using activity-based costing with an ingredients approach. For SU, the costs of the same course delivered with a classroom learning (CL) approach were also estimated. The learning outcomes of both approaches were explored using course grades as an intermediate outcome measure. Results In this contextually bound pilot evaluation, BL had substantially higher costs than the traditional CL approach in South Africa, even when average per-site or per-student costs were considered. Staff costs were the major cost driver in both approaches, but total staff costs were three times higher for the BL course at SU. This implies that inter-institutional BL can be more time consuming, for example, due to use of new technologies. Explorative findings indicated that there was little difference in students’ learning outcomes. Conclusions The total provider costs of the inter-institutional BL course were higher than the CL course at SU. Long-term economic evaluations of BL with societal perspective are warranted before conclusions on full costs and consequences of BL in teaching global health topics can be made. PMID:27725076

A partial economic evaluation of blended learning in teaching health research methods: a three-university collaboration in South Africa, Sweden, and Uganda.

PubMed

Kumpu, Minna; Atkins, Salla; Zwarenstein, Merrick; Nkonki, Lungiswa

2016-01-01

Novel research training approaches are needed in global health, particularly in sub-Saharan African universities, to support strengthening of health systems and services. Blended learning (BL), combining face-to-face teaching with computer-based technologies, is also an accessible and flexible education method for teaching global health and related topics. When organised as inter-institutional collaboration, BL also has potential for sharing teaching resources. However, there is insufficient data on the costs of BL in higher education. Our goal was to evaluate the total provider costs of BL in teaching health research methods in a three-university collaboration. A retrospective evaluation was performed on a BL course on randomised controlled trials, which was led by Stellenbosch University (SU) in South Africa and joined by Swedish and Ugandan universities. For all three universities, the costs of the BL course were evaluated using activity-based costing with an ingredients approach. For SU, the costs of the same course delivered with a classroom learning (CL) approach were also estimated. The learning outcomes of both approaches were explored using course grades as an intermediate outcome measure. In this contextually bound pilot evaluation, BL had substantially higher costs than the traditional CL approach in South Africa, even when average per-site or per-student costs were considered. Staff costs were the major cost driver in both approaches, but total staff costs were three times higher for the BL course at SU. This implies that inter-institutional BL can be more time consuming, for example, due to use of new technologies. Explorative findings indicated that there was little difference in students' learning outcomes. The total provider costs of the inter-institutional BL course were higher than the CL course at SU. Long-term economic evaluations of BL with societal perspective are warranted before conclusions on full costs and consequences of BL in teaching global health topics can be made.

Simulative design and process optimization of the two-stage stretch-blow molding process

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

Hopmann, Ch.; Rasche, S.; Windeck, C.

2015-05-22

The total production costs of PET bottles are significantly affected by the costs of raw material. Approximately 70 % of the total costs are spent for the raw material. Therefore, stretch-blow molding industry intends to reduce the total production costs by an optimized material efficiency. However, there is often a trade-off between an optimized material efficiency and required product properties. Due to a multitude of complex boundary conditions, the design process of new stretch-blow molded products is still a challenging task and is often based on empirical knowledge. Application of current CAE-tools supports the design process by reducing development timemore » and costs. This paper describes an approach to determine optimized preform geometry and corresponding process parameters iteratively. The wall thickness distribution and the local stretch ratios of the blown bottle are calculated in a three-dimensional process simulation. Thereby, the wall thickness distribution is correlated with an objective function and preform geometry as well as process parameters are varied by an optimization algorithm. Taking into account the correlation between material usage, process history and resulting product properties, integrative coupled simulation steps, e.g. structural analyses or barrier simulations, are performed. The approach is applied on a 0.5 liter PET bottle of Krones AG, Neutraubling, Germany. The investigations point out that the design process can be supported by applying this simulative optimization approach. In an optimization study the total bottle weight is reduced from 18.5 g to 15.5 g. The validation of the computed results is in progress.« less

Simulative design and process optimization of the two-stage stretch-blow molding process

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hopmann, Ch.; Rasche, S.; Windeck, C.

2015-05-01

The total production costs of PET bottles are significantly affected by the costs of raw material. Approximately 70 % of the total costs are spent for the raw material. Therefore, stretch-blow molding industry intends to reduce the total production costs by an optimized material efficiency. However, there is often a trade-off between an optimized material efficiency and required product properties. Due to a multitude of complex boundary conditions, the design process of new stretch-blow molded products is still a challenging task and is often based on empirical knowledge. Application of current CAE-tools supports the design process by reducing development time and costs. This paper describes an approach to determine optimized preform geometry and corresponding process parameters iteratively. The wall thickness distribution and the local stretch ratios of the blown bottle are calculated in a three-dimensional process simulation. Thereby, the wall thickness distribution is correlated with an objective function and preform geometry as well as process parameters are varied by an optimization algorithm. Taking into account the correlation between material usage, process history and resulting product properties, integrative coupled simulation steps, e.g. structural analyses or barrier simulations, are performed. The approach is applied on a 0.5 liter PET bottle of Krones AG, Neutraubling, Germany. The investigations point out that the design process can be supported by applying this simulative optimization approach. In an optimization study the total bottle weight is reduced from 18.5 g to 15.5 g. The validation of the computed results is in progress.

Low Cost, Low Tech, Low Brow Technology: A Plan for Campus Communication.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bernardo, Kurt E.

This paper describes Lake Erie College's (Ohio) economical solution to providing electronic communication for faculty on its campus. The college first assessed its existing computer capabilities to determine its needs. The college wanted to increase the total number of users on the local area network in order to better utilize the existing network…

32 CFR 286.30 - Collection of fees and fee rates for technical data.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... hourly rates). (2) Computer search is based on the total cost of the central processing unit, input... made by Components at the following rates: (1) Minimum charge for office copy (up to six images) $3.50 (2) Each additional image .10 (3) Each typewritten page 3.50 (4) Certification and validation with...

32 CFR 286.30 - Collection of fees and fee rates for technical data.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... hourly rates). (2) Computer search is based on the total cost of the central processing unit, input... made by Components at the following rates: (1) Minimum charge for office copy (up to six images) $3.50 (2) Each additional image .10 (3) Each typewritten page 3.50 (4) Certification and validation with...

32 CFR 286.30 - Collection of fees and fee rates for technical data.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... hourly rates). (2) Computer search is based on the total cost of the central processing unit, input... made by Components at the following rates: (1) Minimum charge for office copy (up to six images) $3.50 (2) Each additional image .10 (3) Each typewritten page 3.50 (4) Certification and validation with...

32 CFR 286.30 - Collection of fees and fee rates for technical data.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... hourly rates). (2) Computer search is based on the total cost of the central processing unit, input... made by Components at the following rates: (1) Minimum charge for office copy (up to six images) $3.50 (2) Each additional image .10 (3) Each typewritten page 3.50 (4) Certification and validation with...

A Technical Description of the Officer Procurement Model (TOPOPS). Final Report.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Akman, Allan; And Others

The Total Objective Plan for the Officer Procurement System (TOPOPS) is an aggregate-level, computer-based model of the Air Force Officer procurement system developed to operate on the UNIVAC 1108 system. It is designed to simulate officer accession and training and achieve optimal solutions in terms of either cost minimization or accession…

Cost of breast cancer based on real-world data: a cancer registry study in Italy.

PubMed

Capri, Stefano; Russo, Antonio

2017-01-26

In European countries, it is difficult for local health organizations to determine the resources allocated to different hospitals for breast cancer. The aim of the current study was to examine the costs of breast cancer during the different phases of the diagnostictherapeutic sequence based on real world data. To identify breast cancer cases diagnosed between 2007 and 2011, we used the cancer registry of the Agency for Health Protection of the Province of Milan (3.2 million inhabitants). A generalized linear model controlling for patient age, cancer stage and Charlson co-morbidity index was used to calculate the adjusted mean costs for each hospital and for each study phase. Regression analyses were based on dependent variables of individual costs (diagnosis, treatment, follow-up and total cost were logtransformed. The following independent variables were included as covariates: age at diagnosis, hospital volume, stage, job category, educational level, marital status, comorbidities, deprivation index. Total and mean costs were computed for several variables and for each phase. On average for each subject, the costs were collected over 2.5 years. A total of 12,580 breast cancer cases were studied. The mean cost of diagnosis was €414, the mean cost of treatment was €8,780, the mean overall cost of follow-up was approximately €2,351, and the mean total direct medical cost was €10,970. The age of the patients, stage of tumor and employment level of the patient were significantly correlated with the variability of the costs. The highest variability in costs was observed for the follow-up costs, in which 38% of hospitals fell outside the 95% confidence interval. In the overspending-hospitals, patients received an intensive follow-up regimen with scintigraphy and thoracic CAT (computerized axial tomography). In this study, which represents the first population-level study of its kind in Italy, we estimated all direct medical costs for the 6-month period before the diagnosis of breast cancer and the first two years after diagnosis. Patients were identified from the local cancer registry. The analysis offers insight into the utilization of resources incurred by one major area of interest of cancer care in Italy.

A novel multi-item joint replenishment problem considering multiple type discounts.

PubMed

Cui, Ligang; Zhang, Yajun; Deng, Jie; Xu, Maozeng

2018-01-01

In business replenishment, discount offers of multi-item may either provide different discount schedules with a single discount type, or provide schedules with multiple discount types. The paper investigates the joint effects of multiple discount schemes on the decisions of multi-item joint replenishment. In this paper, a joint replenishment problem (JRP) model, considering three discount (all-unit discount, incremental discount, total volume discount) offers simultaneously, is constructed to determine the basic cycle time and joint replenishment frequencies of multi-item. To solve the proposed problem, a heuristic algorithm is proposed to find the optimal solutions and the corresponding total cost of the JRP model. Numerical experiment is performed to test the algorithm and the computational results of JRPs under different discount combinations show different significance in the replenishment cost reduction.

Risk and Vulnerability Assessment Using Cybernomic Computational Models: Tailored for Industrial Control Systems

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

Abercrombie, Robert K; Sheldon, Federick T.; Schlicher, Bob G

2015-01-01

There are many influencing economic factors to weigh from the defender-practitioner stakeholder point-of-view that involve cost combined with development/deployment models. Some examples include the cost of countermeasures themselves, the cost of training and the cost of maintenance. Meanwhile, we must better anticipate the total cost from a compromise. The return on investment in countermeasures is essentially impact costs (i.e., the costs from violating availability, integrity and confidentiality / privacy requirements). The natural question arises about choosing the main risks that must be mitigated/controlled and monitored in deciding where to focus security investments. To answer this question, we have investigated themore » cost/benefits to the attacker/defender to better estimate risk exposure. In doing so, it s important to develop a sound basis for estimating the factors that derive risk exposure, such as likelihood that a threat will emerge and whether it will be thwarted. This impact assessment framework can provide key information for ranking cybersecurity threats and managing risk.« less

Microcomputer software to facilitate costing in pathology laboratories.

PubMed Central

Stilwell, J A; Woodford, F P

1987-01-01

A software program is described which will enable laboratory managers to calculate, for their laboratory over a 12 month period, the cost of each test or investigation and of components of that cost. These comprise the costs of direct labour, consumables, equipment maintenance and depreciation; allocated costs of intermediate operations--for example, specimen procurement, reception, and data processing; and apportioned indirect costs such as senior staff time as well as external overheads such as telephone charges, rent, and rates. Total annual expenditure on each type of test is also calculated. The principles on which the program is based are discussed. Considered in particular, are the problems of apportioning indirect costs (which are considerable in clinical laboratory work) over different test costs, and the merits of different ways of estimating the amount or fraction of staff members' time spent on each kind of test. The computer program is Crown copyright but is available under licence from one of us (JAS). PMID:3654982

Operating Dedicated Data Centers - Is It Cost-Effective?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ernst, M.; Hogue, R.; Hollowell, C.; Strecker-Kellog, W.; Wong, A.; Zaytsev, A.

2014-06-01

The advent of cloud computing centres such as Amazon's EC2 and Google's Computing Engine has elicited comparisons with dedicated computing clusters. Discussions on appropriate usage of cloud resources (both academic and commercial) and costs have ensued. This presentation discusses a detailed analysis of the costs of operating and maintaining the RACF (RHIC and ATLAS Computing Facility) compute cluster at Brookhaven National Lab and compares them with the cost of cloud computing resources under various usage scenarios. An extrapolation of likely future cost effectiveness of dedicated computing resources is also presented.

Activity-based costing: a practical model for cost calculation in radiotherapy.

PubMed

Lievens, Yolande; van den Bogaert, Walter; Kesteloot, Katrien

2003-10-01

The activity-based costing method was used to compute radiotherapy costs. This report describes the model developed, the calculated costs, and possible applications for the Leuven radiotherapy department. Activity-based costing is an advanced cost calculation technique that allocates resource costs to products based on activity consumption. In the Leuven model, a complex allocation principle with a large diversity of cost drivers was avoided by introducing an extra allocation step between activity groups and activities. A straightforward principle of time consumption, weighed by some factors of treatment complexity, was used. The model was developed in an iterative way, progressively defining the constituting components (costs, activities, products, and cost drivers). Radiotherapy costs are predominantly determined by personnel and equipment cost. Treatment-related activities consume the greatest proportion of the resource costs, with treatment delivery the most important component. This translates into products that have a prolonged total or daily treatment time being the most costly. The model was also used to illustrate the impact of changes in resource costs and in practice patterns. The presented activity-based costing model is a practical tool to evaluate the actual cost structure of a radiotherapy department and to evaluate possible resource or practice changes.

Aerothermodynamic Design Sensitivities for a Reacting Gas Flow Solver on an Unstructured Mesh Using a Discrete Adjoint Formulation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Thompson, Kyle Bonner

An algorithm is described to efficiently compute aerothermodynamic design sensitivities using a decoupled variable set. In a conventional approach to computing design sensitivities for reacting flows, the species continuity equations are fully coupled to the conservation laws for momentum and energy. In this algorithm, the species continuity equations are solved separately from the mixture continuity, momentum, and total energy equations. This decoupling simplifies the implicit system, so that the flow solver can be made significantly more efficient, with very little penalty on overall scheme robustness. Most importantly, the computational cost of the point implicit relaxation is shown to scale linearly with the number of species for the decoupled system, whereas the fully coupled approach scales quadratically. Also, the decoupled method significantly reduces the cost in wall time and memory in comparison to the fully coupled approach. This decoupled approach for computing design sensitivities with the adjoint system is demonstrated for inviscid flow in chemical non-equilibrium around a re-entry vehicle with a retro-firing annular nozzle. The sensitivities of the surface temperature and mass flow rate through the nozzle plenum are computed with respect to plenum conditions and verified against sensitivities computed using a complex-variable finite-difference approach. The decoupled scheme significantly reduces the computational time and memory required to complete the optimization, making this an attractive method for high-fidelity design of hypersonic vehicles.

Using parallel banded linear system solvers in generalized eigenvalue problems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Zhang, Hong; Moss, William F.

1993-01-01

Subspace iteration is a reliable and cost effective method for solving positive definite banded symmetric generalized eigenproblems, especially in the case of large scale problems. This paper discusses an algorithm that makes use of two parallel banded solvers in subspace iteration. A shift is introduced to decompose the banded linear systems into relatively independent subsystems and to accelerate the iterations. With this shift, an eigenproblem is mapped efficiently into the memories of a multiprocessor and a high speed-up is obtained for parallel implementations. An optimal shift is a shift that balances total computation and communication costs. Under certain conditions, we show how to estimate an optimal shift analytically using the decay rate for the inverse of a banded matrix, and how to improve this estimate. Computational results on iPSC/2 and iPSC/860 multiprocessors are presented.

The HEPCloud Facility: elastic computing for High Energy Physics - The NOvA Use Case

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fuess, S.; Garzoglio, G.; Holzman, B.; Kennedy, R.; Norman, A.; Timm, S.; Tiradani, A.

2017-10-01

The need for computing in the HEP community follows cycles of peaks and valleys mainly driven by conference dates, accelerator shutdown, holiday schedules, and other factors. Because of this, the classical method of provisioning these resources at providing facilities has drawbacks such as potential overprovisioning. As the appetite for computing increases, however, so does the need to maximize cost efficiency by developing a model for dynamically provisioning resources only when needed. To address this issue, the HEPCloud project was launched by the Fermilab Scientific Computing Division in June 2015. Its goal is to develop a facility that provides a common interface to a variety of resources, including local clusters, grids, high performance computers, and community and commercial Clouds. Initially targeted experiments include CMS and NOvA, as well as other Fermilab stakeholders. In its first phase, the project has demonstrated the use of the “elastic” provisioning model offered by commercial clouds, such as Amazon Web Services. In this model, resources are rented and provisioned automatically over the Internet upon request. In January 2016, the project demonstrated the ability to increase the total amount of global CMS resources by 58,000 cores from 150,000 cores - a 38 percent increase - in preparation for the Recontres de Moriond. In March 2016, the NOvA experiment has also demonstrated resource burst capabilities with an additional 7,300 cores, achieving a scale almost four times as large as the local allocated resources and utilizing the local AWS s3 storage to optimize data handling operations and costs. NOvA was using the same familiar services used for local computations, such as data handling and job submission, in preparation for the Neutrino 2016 conference. In both cases, the cost was contained by the use of the Amazon Spot Instance Market and the Decision Engine, a HEPCloud component that aims at minimizing cost and job interruption. This paper describes the Fermilab HEPCloud Facility and the challenges overcome for the CMS and NOvA communities.

Current concepts and future perspectives in computer-assisted navigated total knee replacement.

PubMed

Matsumoto, Tomoyuki; Nakano, Naoki; Lawrence, John E; Khanduja, Vikas

2018-05-12

Total knee replacements (TKR) aim to restore stability of the tibiofemoral and patella-femoral joints and provide relief of pain and improved quality of life for the patient. In recent years, computer-assisted navigation systems have been developed with the aim of reducing human error in joint alignment and improving patient outcomes. We examined the current body of evidence surrounding the use of navigation systems and discussed their current and future role in TKR. The current body of evidence shows that the use of computer navigation systems for TKR significantly reduces outliers in the mechanical axis and coronal prosthetic position. Also, navigation systems offer an objective assessment of soft tissue balancing that had previously not been available. Although these benefits represent a technical superiority to conventional TKR techniques, there is limited evidence to show long-term clinical benefit with the use of navigation systems, with only a small number of studies showing improvement in outcome scores at short-term follow-up. Because of the increased costs and operative time associated with their use as well as the emergence of more affordable and patient-specific technologies, it is unlikely for navigation systems to become more widely used in the near future. Whilst this technology helps surgeons to achieve improved component positioning, it is important to consider the clinical and functional implications, as well as the added costs and potential learning curve associated with adopting new technology.

A Study on Cost Allocation in Nuclear Power Coupled with Desalination

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

Lee, ManKi; Kim, SeungSu; Moon, KeeHwan

As for a single-purpose desalination plant, there is no particular difficulty in computing the unit cost of the water, which is obtained by dividing the annual total costs by the output of fresh water. When it comes to a dual-purpose plant, cost allocation is needed between the two products. No cost allocation is needed in some cases where two alternatives producing the same water and electricity output are to be compared. In these cases, the consideration of the total cost is then sufficient. This study assumes MED (Multi-Effect Distillation) technology is adopted when nuclear power is coupled with desalination. Themore » total production cost of the two commodities in dual-purpose plant can easily be obtained by using costing methods, if the necessary raw data are available. However, it is not easy to calculate a separate cost for each product, because high-pressure steam plant costs cannot be allocated to one or the other without adopting arbitrary methods. Investigation on power credit method is carried out focusing on the cost allocation of combined benefits due to dual production, electricity and water. The illustrative calculation is taken from Preliminary Economic Feasibility Study of Nuclear Desalination in Madura Island, Indonesia. The study is being performed by BATAN (National Nuclear Energy Agency), KAERI (Korean Atomic Energy Research Institute) and under support of the IAEA (International Atomic Energy Agency) started in the year 2002 in order to perform a preliminary economic feasibility in providing the Madurese with sufficient power and potable water for the public and to support industrialization and tourism in Madura Region. The SMART reactor coupled with MED is considered to be an option to produce electricity and potable water. This study indicates that the correct recognition of combined benefits attributable to dual production is important in carrying out economics of desalination coupled with nuclear power. (authors)« less

Enhanced nonlinearity interval mapping scheme for high-performance simulation-optimization of watershed-scale BMP placement

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zou, Rui; Riverson, John; Liu, Yong; Murphy, Ryan; Sim, Youn

2015-03-01

Integrated continuous simulation-optimization models can be effective predictors of a process-based responses for cost-benefit optimization of best management practices (BMPs) selection and placement. However, practical application of simulation-optimization model is computationally prohibitive for large-scale systems. This study proposes an enhanced Nonlinearity Interval Mapping Scheme (NIMS) to solve large-scale watershed simulation-optimization problems several orders of magnitude faster than other commonly used algorithms. An efficient interval response coefficient (IRC) derivation method was incorporated into the NIMS framework to overcome a computational bottleneck. The proposed algorithm was evaluated using a case study watershed in the Los Angeles County Flood Control District. Using a continuous simulation watershed/stream-transport model, Loading Simulation Program in C++ (LSPC), three nested in-stream compliance points (CP)—each with multiple Total Maximum Daily Loads (TMDL) targets—were selected to derive optimal treatment levels for each of the 28 subwatersheds, so that the TMDL targets at all the CP were met with the lowest possible BMP implementation cost. Genetic Algorithm (GA) and NIMS were both applied and compared. The results showed that the NIMS took 11 iterations (about 11 min) to complete with the resulting optimal solution having a total cost of 67.2 million, while each of the multiple GA executions took 21-38 days to reach near optimal solutions. The best solution obtained among all the GA executions compared had a minimized cost of 67.7 million—marginally higher, but approximately equal to that of the NIMS solution. The results highlight the utility for decision making in large-scale watershed simulation-optimization formulations.

Costs and clinical outcomes in individuals without known coronary artery disease undergoing coronary computed tomographic angiography from an analysis of Medicare category III transaction codes.

PubMed

Min, James K; Shaw, Leslee J; Berman, Daniel S; Gilmore, Amanda; Kang, Ning

2008-09-15

Multidetector coronary computed tomographic angiography (CCTA) demonstrates high accuracy for the detection and exclusion of coronary artery disease (CAD) and predicts adverse prognosis. To date, opportunity costs relating the clinical and economic outcomes of CCTA compared with other methods of diagnosing CAD, such as myocardial perfusion single-photon emission computed tomography (SPECT), remain unknown. An observational, multicenter, patient-level analysis of patients without known CAD who underwent CCTA or SPECT was performed. Patients who underwent CCTA (n = 1,938) were matched to those who underwent SPECT (n = 7,752) on 8 demographic and clinical characteristics and 2 summary measures of cardiac medications and co-morbidities and were evaluated for 9-month expenditures and clinical outcomes. Adjusted total health care and CAD expenditures were 27% (p <0.001) and 33% (p <0.001) lower, respectively, for patients who underwent CCTA compared with those who underwent SPECT, by an average of $467 (95% confidence interval $99 to $984) for CAD expenditures per patient. Despite lower total health care expenditures for CCTA, no differences were observed for rates of adverse cardiovascular events, including CAD hospitalizations (4.2% vs 4.1%, p = NS), CAD outpatient visits (17.4% vs 13.3%, p = NS), myocardial infarction (0.4% vs 0.6%, p = NS), and new-onset angina (3.0% vs 3.5%, p = NS). Patients without known CAD who underwent CCTA, compared with matched patients who underwent SPECT, incurred lower overall health care and CAD expenditures while experiencing similarly low rates of CAD hospitalization, outpatient visits, myocardial infarction, and angina. In conclusion, these data suggest that CCTA may be a cost-efficient alternative to SPECT for the initial coronary evaluation of patients without known CAD.

Development of an energy consumption and cost data base for fuel cell total energy systems and conventional building energy systems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pine, G. D.; Christian, J. E.; Mixon, W. R.; Jackson, W. L.

1980-07-01

The procedures and data sources used to develop an energy consumption and system cost data base for use in predicting the market penetration of phosphoric acid fuel cell total energy systems in the nonindustrial building market are described. A computer program was used to simulate the hourly energy requirements of six types of buildings; office buildings; retail stores; hotels and motels; schools; hospitals; and multifamily residences. The simulations were done by using hourly weather tapes for one city in each of the ten Department of Energy administrative regions. Two types of building construction were considered, one for existing buildings and one for new buildings. A fuel cell system combined with electrically driven heat pumps and one combined with a gas boiler and an electrically driven chiller were compared with similar conventional systems. The methods of system simulation, component sizing, and system cost estimation are described for each system.

ESF-X: a low-cost modular experiment computer for space flight experiments

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sell, Steven; Zapetis, Joseph; Littlefield, Jim; Vining, Joanne

2004-08-01

The high cost associated with spaceflight research often compels experimenters to scale back their research goals significantly purely for budgetary reasons; among experiment systems, control and data collection electronics are a major contributor to total project cost. ESF-X was developed as an architecture demonstration in response to this need: it is a highly capable, radiation-protected experiment support computer, designed to be configurable on demand to each investigator's particular experiment needs, and operational in LEO for missions lasting up to several years (e.g., ISS EXPRESS) without scheduled service or maintenance. ESF-X can accommodate up to 255 data channels (I/O, A/D, D/A, etc.), allocated per customer request, with data rates up to 40kHz. Additionally, ESF-X can be programmed using the graphical block-diagram based programming languages Simulink and MATLAB. This represents a major cost saving opportunity for future investigators, who can now obtain a customized, space-qualified experiment controller at steeply reduced cost compared to 'new' design, and without the performance compromises associated with using preexisting 'generic' systems. This paper documents the functional benchtop prototype, which utilizes a combination of COTS and space-qualified components, along with unit-gravity-specific provisions appropriate to laboratory environment evaluation of the ESF-X design concept and its physical implementation.

The effect of bovine somatotropin on the cost of producing milk: Estimates using propensity scores.

PubMed

Tauer, Loren W

2016-04-01

Annual farm-level data from New York dairy farms from the years 1994 through 2013 were used to estimate the cost effect from bovine somatotropin (bST) using propensity score matching. Cost of production was computed using the whole-farm method, which subtracts sales of crops and animals from total costs under the assumption that the cost of producing those products is equal to their sales values. For a farm to be included in this data set, milk receipts on that farm must have comprised 85% or more of total receipts, indicating that these farms are primarily milk producers. Farm use of bST, where 25% or more of the herd was treated, ranged annually from 25 to 47% of the farms. The average cost effect from the use of bST was estimated to be a reduction of $2.67 per 100 kg of milk produced in 2013 dollars, although annual cost reduction estimates ranged from statistical zero to $3.42 in nominal dollars. Nearest neighbor matching techniques generated a similar estimate of $2.78 in 2013 dollars. These cost reductions estimated from the use of bST represented a cost savings of 5.5% per kilogram of milk produced. Herd-level production increase per cow from the use of bST over 20 yr averaged 1,160 kg. Copyright © 2016 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Computer-assisted cognitive remediation therapy in schizophrenia: Durability of the effects and cost-utility analysis.

PubMed

Garrido, Gemma; Penadés, Rafael; Barrios, Maite; Aragay, Núria; Ramos, Irene; Vallès, Vicenç; Faixa, Carlota; Vendrell, Josep M

2017-08-01

The durability of computer-assisted cognitive remediation (CACR) therapy over time and the cost-effectiveness of treatment remains unclear. The aim of the current study is to investigate the effectiveness of CACR and to examine the use and cost of acute psychiatric admissions before and after of CACR. Sixty-seven participants were initially recruited. For the follow-up study a total of 33 participants were enrolled, 20 to the CACR condition group and 13 to the active control condition group. All participants were assessed at baseline, post-therapy and 12 months post-therapy on neuropsychology, QoL and self-esteem measurements. The use and cost of acute psychiatric admissions were collected retrospectively at four assessment points: baseline, 12 months post-therapy, 24 months post-therapy, and 36 months post-therapy. The results indicated that treatment effectiveness persisted in the CACR group one year post-therapy on neuropsychological and well-being outcomes. The CACR group showed a clear decrease in the use of acute psychiatric admissions at 12, 24 and 36 months post-therapy, which lowered the global costs the acute psychiatric admissions at 12, 24 and 36 months post-therapy. The CACR is durable over at least a 12-month period, and CACR may be helping to reduce health care costs for schizophrenia patients. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Costing imaging procedures.

PubMed

Bretland, P M

1988-01-01

The existing National Health Service financial system makes comprehensive costing of any service very difficult. A method of costing using modern commercial methods has been devised, classifying costs into variable, semi-variable and fixed and using the principle of overhead absorption for expenditure not readily allocated to individual procedures. It proved possible to establish a cost spectrum over the financial year 1984-85. The cheapest examinations were plain radiographs outside normal working hours, followed by plain radiographs, ultrasound, special procedures, fluoroscopy, nuclear medicine, angiography and angiographic interventional procedures in normal working hours. This differs from some published figures, particularly those in the Körner report. There was some overlap between fluoroscopic interventional and the cheaper nuclear medicine procedures, and between some of the more expensive nuclear medicine procedures and the cheaper angiographic ones. Only angiographic and the few more expensive nuclear medicine procedures exceed the cost of the inpatient day. The total cost of the imaging service to the district was about 4% of total hospital expenditure. It is shown that where more procedures are undertaken, the semi-variable and fixed (including capital) elements of the cost decrease (and vice versa) so that careful study is required to assess the value of proposed economies. The method is initially time-consuming and requires a computer system with 512 Kb of memory, but once the basic costing system is established in a department, detailed financial monitoring should become practicable. The necessity for a standard comprehensive costing procedure of this nature, based on sound cost accounting principles, appears inescapable, particularly in view of its potential application to management budgeting.

The economic burden of occupational non-melanoma skin cancer due to solar radiation.

PubMed

Mofidi, Amirabbas; Tompa, Emile; Spencer, James; Kalcevich, Christina; Peters, Cheryl E; Kim, Joanne; Song, Chaojie; Mortazavi, Seyed Bagher; Demers, Paul A

2018-06-01

Solar ultraviolet (UV) radiation is the second most prevalent carcinogenic exposure in Canada and is similarly important in other countries with large Caucasian populations. The objective of this article was to estimate the economic burden associated with newly diagnosed non-melanoma skin cancers (NMSCs) attributable to occupational solar radiation exposure. Key cost categories considered were direct costs (healthcare costs, out-of-pocket costs (OOPCs), and informal caregiver costs); indirect costs (productivity/output costs and home production costs); and intangible costs (monetary value of the loss of health-related quality of life (HRQoL)). To generate the burden estimates, we used secondary data from multiple sources applied to computational methods developed from an extensive review of the literature. An estimated 2,846 (5.3%) of the 53,696 newly diagnosed cases of basal cell carcinoma (BCC) and 1,710 (9.2%) of the 18,549 newly diagnosed cases of squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) in 2011 in Canada were attributable to occupational solar radiation exposure. The combined total for direct and indirect costs of occupational NMSC cases is $28.9 million ($15.9 million for BCC and $13.0 million for SCC), and for intangible costs is $5.7 million ($0.6 million for BCC and $5.1 million for SCC). On a per-case basis, the total costs are $5,670 for BCC and $10,555 for SCC. The higher per-case cost for SCC is largely a result of a lower survival rate, and hence higher indirect and intangible costs. Our estimates can be used to raise awareness of occupational solar UV exposure as an important causal factor in NMSCs and can highlight the importance of occupational BCC and SCC among other occupational cancers.

Medical privacy protection based on granular computing.

PubMed

Wang, Da-Wei; Liau, Churn-Jung; Hsu, Tsan-Sheng

2004-10-01

Based on granular computing methodology, we propose two criteria to quantitatively measure privacy invasion. The total cost criterion measures the effort needed for a data recipient to find private information. The average benefit criterion measures the benefit a data recipient obtains when he received the released data. These two criteria remedy the inadequacy of the deterministic privacy formulation proposed in Proceedings of Asia Pacific Medical Informatics Conference, 2000; Int J Med Inform 2003;71:17-23. Granular computing methodology provides a unified framework for these quantitative measurements and previous bin size and logical approaches. These two new criteria are implemented in a prototype system Cellsecu 2.0. Preliminary system performance evaluation is conducted and reviewed.

Descriptive analysis of the cost-effectiveness of depressed patients undergoing total knee arthroplasty: an economic decision analysis.

PubMed

Gong, Long; Chen, Hua

2014-09-01

Recent rising concern about the cost-effectiveness ratio of total knee arthroplasty (TKA) led us to evaluate this successful procedure from the economic perspective, thereby helping policy-makers to conduct medical resource allocation more effectively and efficiently. However, up to now no study has investigated the influence of patients' psychological factors on their evaluation of TKA's cost-effectiveness. Therefore, we decided to determine whether and how depression, which is a common negative psychological factor in the population undergoing TKA, affects their economic evaluation of the procedure. A total of 312 patients who had undergone TKA were graded into three groups based on the level of depression measured by the Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale (CES-D) scores. Clinical effectiveness information was obtained using the WOMAC questionnaire; total costs related to TKA were acquired through interviews with patients and review of their medical records in the computing system. Patients with high-level depression (3491.9$/QALYS; 95% CI, 3471.1-3491.9$/QALYS) had greater cost-effectiveness compared tothose with low-level (2447.1$/QALYS; 95% CI, 2427.9-2466.3$/QALYS) and middle-level (3027.2$/QALYS; 95% CI, 3011.0-3043.4$/QALYS) depression. We concluded there was a significant positive correlation between cost-effectiveness and the level of depression after TKA (r = 0.703, P = 0.014). Significant differences in the costs of hospital stay, medical treatment, rehabilitation, and outpatient care were detected among the three groups. Our study might help policy-makers and clinicians identify which types of patients benefit most from TKA and then advise high-risk patients (high-level depression status in this study) about how to recovery better with limited resource allocation. Preoperative evaluation of patients' psychological state may decrease unnecessary economic burdens and suffering during the recovery period.

Addressing the computational cost of large EIT solutions.

PubMed

Boyle, Alistair; Borsic, Andrea; Adler, Andy

2012-05-01

Electrical impedance tomography (EIT) is a soft field tomography modality based on the application of electric current to a body and measurement of voltages through electrodes at the boundary. The interior conductivity is reconstructed on a discrete representation of the domain using a finite-element method (FEM) mesh and a parametrization of that domain. The reconstruction requires a sequence of numerically intensive calculations. There is strong interest in reducing the cost of these calculations. An improvement in the compute time for current problems would encourage further exploration of computationally challenging problems such as the incorporation of time series data, wide-spread adoption of three-dimensional simulations and correlation of other modalities such as CT and ultrasound. Multicore processors offer an opportunity to reduce EIT computation times but may require some restructuring of the underlying algorithms to maximize the use of available resources. This work profiles two EIT software packages (EIDORS and NDRM) to experimentally determine where the computational costs arise in EIT as problems scale. Sparse matrix solvers, a key component for the FEM forward problem and sensitivity estimates in the inverse problem, are shown to take a considerable portion of the total compute time in these packages. A sparse matrix solver performance measurement tool, Meagre-Crowd, is developed to interface with a variety of solvers and compare their performance over a range of two- and three-dimensional problems of increasing node density. Results show that distributed sparse matrix solvers that operate on multiple cores are advantageous up to a limit that increases as the node density increases. We recommend a selection procedure to find a solver and hardware arrangement matched to the problem and provide guidance and tools to perform that selection.

Communications network design and costing model technical manual

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Logan, K. P.; Somes, S. S.; Clark, C. A.

1983-01-01

This computer model provides the capability for analyzing long-haul trunking networks comprising a set of user-defined cities, traffic conditions, and tariff rates. Networks may consist of all terrestrial connectivity, all satellite connectivity, or a combination of terrestrial and satellite connectivity. Network solutions provide the least-cost routes between all cities, the least-cost network routing configuration, and terrestrial and satellite service cost totals. The CNDC model allows analyses involving three specific FCC-approved tariffs, which are uniquely structured and representative of most existing service connectivity and pricing philosophies. User-defined tariffs that can be variations of these three tariffs are accepted as input to the model and allow considerable flexibility in network problem specification. The resulting model extends the domain of network analysis from traditional fixed link cost (distance-sensitive) problems to more complex problems involving combinations of distance and traffic-sensitive tariffs.

Optimal subhourly electricity resource dispatch under multiple price signals with high renewable generation availability

DOE PAGES

Chassin, David P.; Behboodi, Sahand; Djilali, Ned

2018-01-28

This article proposes a system-wide optimal resource dispatch strategy that enables a shift from a primarily energy cost-based approach, to a strategy using simultaneous price signals for energy, power and ramping behavior. A formal method to compute the optimal sub-hourly power trajectory is derived for a system when the price of energy and ramping are both significant. Optimal control functions are obtained in both time and frequency domains, and a discrete-time solution suitable for periodic feedback control systems is presented. The method is applied to North America Western Interconnection for the planning year 2024, and it is shown that anmore » optimal dispatch strategy that simultaneously considers both the cost of energy and the cost of ramping leads to significant cost savings in systems with high levels of renewable generation: the savings exceed 25% of the total system operating cost for a 50% renewables scenario.« less

Optimal subhourly electricity resource dispatch under multiple price signals with high renewable generation availability

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

Chassin, David P.; Behboodi, Sahand; Djilali, Ned

This article proposes a system-wide optimal resource dispatch strategy that enables a shift from a primarily energy cost-based approach, to a strategy using simultaneous price signals for energy, power and ramping behavior. A formal method to compute the optimal sub-hourly power trajectory is derived for a system when the price of energy and ramping are both significant. Optimal control functions are obtained in both time and frequency domains, and a discrete-time solution suitable for periodic feedback control systems is presented. The method is applied to North America Western Interconnection for the planning year 2024, and it is shown that anmore » optimal dispatch strategy that simultaneously considers both the cost of energy and the cost of ramping leads to significant cost savings in systems with high levels of renewable generation: the savings exceed 25% of the total system operating cost for a 50% renewables scenario.« less

The value-based medicine comparative effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of penetrating keratoplasty for keratoconus.

PubMed

Roe, Richard H; Lass, Jonathan H; Brown, Gary C; Brown, Melissa M

2008-10-01

To perform a base case, comparative effectiveness, and cost-effectiveness (cost-utility) analysis of penetrating keratoplasty for patients with severe keratoconus. Visual acuity data were obtained from a large, retrospective multicenter study in which patients with keratoconus with less than 20/40 best corrected visual acuity and/or the inability to wear contact lenses underwent penetrating keratoplasty, with an average follow-up of 2.1 years. The results were combined with other retrospective studies investigating complication rates of penetrating keratoplasty. The data were then incorporated into a cost-utility model using patient preference-based, time trade-off utilities, computer-based decision analysis, and a net present value model to account for the time value of outcomes and money. The comparative effectiveness of the intervention is expressed in quality-of-life gain and QALYs (quality-adjusted life-years), and the cost-effectiveness results are expressed in the outcome of $/QALY (dollars spent per QALY). Penetrating keratoplasty in 1 eye for patients with severe keratoconus results in a comparative effectiveness (value gain) of 16.5% improvement in quality of life every day over the 44-year life expectancy of the average patient with severe keratoconus. Discounting the total value gain of 5.36 QALYs at a 3% annual discount rate yields 3.05 QALYs gained. The incremental cost for penetrating keratoplasty, including all complications, is $5934 ($5913 discounted at 3% per year). Thus, the incremental cost-utility (discounted at 3% annually) for this intervention is $5913/3.05 QALYs = $1942/QALY. If both eyes undergo corneal transplant, the total discounted value gain is 30% and the overall cost-utility is $2003. Surgery on the second eye confers a total discounted value gain of 2.5 QALYs, yielding a quality-of-life gain of 11.6% and a discounted cost-utility of $2238/QALY. Penetrating keratoplasty for patients with severe keratoconus seems to be a comparatively effective and cost-effective procedure when compared with other interventions across different medical specialties.

Biomedical cloud computing with Amazon Web Services.

PubMed

Fusaro, Vincent A; Patil, Prasad; Gafni, Erik; Wall, Dennis P; Tonellato, Peter J

2011-08-01

In this overview to biomedical computing in the cloud, we discussed two primary ways to use the cloud (a single instance or cluster), provided a detailed example using NGS mapping, and highlighted the associated costs. While many users new to the cloud may assume that entry is as straightforward as uploading an application and selecting an instance type and storage options, we illustrated that there is substantial up-front effort required before an application can make full use of the cloud's vast resources. Our intention was to provide a set of best practices and to illustrate how those apply to a typical application pipeline for biomedical informatics, but also general enough for extrapolation to other types of computational problems. Our mapping example was intended to illustrate how to develop a scalable project and not to compare and contrast alignment algorithms for read mapping and genome assembly. Indeed, with a newer aligner such as Bowtie, it is possible to map the entire African genome using one m2.2xlarge instance in 48 hours for a total cost of approximately $48 in computation time. In our example, we were not concerned with data transfer rates, which are heavily influenced by the amount of available bandwidth, connection latency, and network availability. When transferring large amounts of data to the cloud, bandwidth limitations can be a major bottleneck, and in some cases it is more efficient to simply mail a storage device containing the data to AWS (http://aws.amazon.com/importexport/). More information about cloud computing, detailed cost analysis, and security can be found in references.

Towards a Low-Cost Remote Memory Attestation for the Smart Grid

PubMed Central

Yang, Xinyu; He, Xiaofei; Yu, Wei; Lin, Jie; Li, Rui; Yang, Qingyu; Song, Houbing

2015-01-01

In the smart grid, measurement devices may be compromised by adversaries, and their operations could be disrupted by attacks. A number of schemes to efficiently and accurately detect these compromised devices remotely have been proposed. Nonetheless, most of the existing schemes detecting compromised devices depend on the incremental response time in the attestation process, which are sensitive to data transmission delay and lead to high computation and network overhead. To address the issue, in this paper, we propose a low-cost remote memory attestation scheme (LRMA), which can efficiently and accurately detect compromised smart meters considering real-time network delay and achieve low computation and network overhead. In LRMA, the impact of real-time network delay on detecting compromised nodes can be eliminated via investigating the time differences reported from relay nodes. Furthermore, the attestation frequency in LRMA is dynamically adjusted with the compromised probability of each node, and then, the total number of attestations could be reduced while low computation and network overhead can be achieved. Through a combination of extensive theoretical analysis and evaluations, our data demonstrate that our proposed scheme can achieve better detection capacity and lower computation and network overhead in comparison to existing schemes. PMID:26307998

Towards a Low-Cost Remote Memory Attestation for the Smart Grid.

PubMed

Yang, Xinyu; He, Xiaofei; Yu, Wei; Lin, Jie; Li, Rui; Yang, Qingyu; Song, Houbing

2015-08-21

In the smart grid, measurement devices may be compromised by adversaries, and their operations could be disrupted by attacks. A number of schemes to efficiently and accurately detect these compromised devices remotely have been proposed. Nonetheless, most of the existing schemes detecting compromised devices depend on the incremental response time in the attestation process, which are sensitive to data transmission delay and lead to high computation and network overhead. To address the issue, in this paper, we propose a low-cost remote memory attestation scheme (LRMA), which can efficiently and accurately detect compromised smart meters considering real-time network delay and achieve low computation and network overhead. In LRMA, the impact of real-time network delay on detecting compromised nodes can be eliminated via investigating the time differences reported from relay nodes. Furthermore, the attestation frequency in LRMA is dynamically adjusted with the compromised probability of each node, and then, the total number of attestations could be reduced while low computation and network overhead can be achieved. Through a combination of extensive theoretical analysis and evaluations, our data demonstrate that our proposed scheme can achieve better detection capacity and lower computation and network overhead in comparison to existing schemes.

How the Brain Decides When to Work and When to Rest: Dissociation of Implicit-Reactive from Explicit-Predictive Computational Processes

PubMed Central

Meyniel, Florent; Safra, Lou; Pessiglione, Mathias

2014-01-01

A pervasive case of cost-benefit problem is how to allocate effort over time, i.e. deciding when to work and when to rest. An economic decision perspective would suggest that duration of effort is determined beforehand, depending on expected costs and benefits. However, the literature on exercise performance emphasizes that decisions are made on the fly, depending on physiological variables. Here, we propose and validate a general model of effort allocation that integrates these two views. In this model, a single variable, termed cost evidence, accumulates during effort and dissipates during rest, triggering effort cessation and resumption when reaching bounds. We assumed that such a basic mechanism could explain implicit adaptation, whereas the latent parameters (slopes and bounds) could be amenable to explicit anticipation. A series of behavioral experiments manipulating effort duration and difficulty was conducted in a total of 121 healthy humans to dissociate implicit-reactive from explicit-predictive computations. Results show 1) that effort and rest durations are adapted on the fly to variations in cost-evidence level, 2) that the cost-evidence fluctuations driving the behavior do not match explicit ratings of exhaustion, and 3) that actual difficulty impacts effort duration whereas expected difficulty impacts rest duration. Taken together, our findings suggest that cost evidence is implicitly monitored online, with an accumulation rate proportional to actual task difficulty. In contrast, cost-evidence bounds and dissipation rate might be adjusted in anticipation, depending on explicit task difficulty. PMID:24743711

Space Technology Mission Directorate: Game Changing Development

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Gaddis, Stephen W.

2015-01-01

NASA and the aerospace community have deep roots in manufacturing technology and innovation. Through it's Game Changing Development Program and the Advanced Manufacturing Technology Project NASA develops and matures innovative, low-cost manufacturing processes and products. Launch vehicle propulsion systems are a particular area of interest since they typically comprise a large percentage of the total vehicle cost and development schedule. NASA is currently working to develop and utilize emerging technologies such as additive manufacturing (i.e. 3D printing) and computational materials and processing tools that could dramatically improve affordability, capability, and reduce schedule for rocket propulsion hardware.

Cost of installing and operating an electronic clinical decision support system for maternal health care: case of Tanzania rural primary health centres.

PubMed

Saronga, Happiness Pius; Dalaba, Maxwell Ayindenaba; Dong, Hengjin; Leshabari, Melkizedeck; Sauerborn, Rainer; Sukums, Felix; Blank, Antje; Kaltschmidt, Jens; Loukanova, Svetla

2015-04-02

Poor quality of care is among the causes of high maternal and newborn disease burden in Tanzania. Potential reason for poor quality of care is the existence of a "know-do gap" where by health workers do not perform to the best of their knowledge. An electronic clinical decision support system (CDSS) for maternal health care was piloted in six rural primary health centers of Tanzania to improve performance of health workers by facilitating adherence to World Health Organization (WHO) guidelines and ultimately improve quality of maternal health care. This study aimed at assessing the cost of installing and operating the system in the health centers. This retrospective study was conducted in Lindi, Tanzania. Costs incurred by the project were analyzed using Ingredients approach. These costs broadly included vehicle, computers, furniture, facility, CDSS software, transport, personnel, training, supplies and communication. These were grouped into installation and operation cost; recurrent and capital cost; and fixed and variable cost. We assessed the CDSS in terms of its financial and economic cost implications. We also conducted a sensitivity analysis on the estimations. Total financial cost of CDSS intervention amounted to 185,927.78 USD. 77% of these costs were incurred in the installation phase and included all the activities in preparation for the actual operation of the system for client care. Generally, training made the largest share of costs (33% of total cost and more than half of the recurrent cost) followed by CDSS software- 32% of total cost. There was a difference of 31.4% between the economic and financial costs. 92.5% of economic costs were fixed costs consisting of inputs whose costs do not vary with the volume of activity within a given range. Economic cost per CDSS contact was 52.7 USD but sensitive to discount rate, asset useful life and input cost variations. Our study presents financial and economic cost estimates of installing and operating an electronic CDSS for maternal health care in six rural health centres. From these findings one can understand exactly what goes into a similar investment and thus determine sorts of input modification needed to fit their context.

Probabilistic Methodology for Estimation of Number and Economic Loss (Cost) of Future Landslides in the San Francisco Bay Region, California

USGS Publications Warehouse

Crovelli, Robert A.; Coe, Jeffrey A.

2008-01-01

The Probabilistic Landslide Assessment Cost Estimation System (PLACES) presented in this report estimates the number and economic loss (cost) of landslides during a specified future time in individual areas, and then calculates the sum of those estimates. The analytic probabilistic methodology is based upon conditional probability theory and laws of expectation and variance. The probabilistic methodology is expressed in the form of a Microsoft Excel computer spreadsheet program. Using historical records, the PLACES spreadsheet is used to estimate the number of future damaging landslides and total damage, as economic loss, from future landslides caused by rainstorms in 10 counties of the San Francisco Bay region in California. Estimates are made for any future 5-year period of time. The estimated total number of future damaging landslides for the entire 10-county region during any future 5-year period of time is about 330. Santa Cruz County has the highest estimated number of damaging landslides (about 90), whereas Napa, San Francisco, and Solano Counties have the lowest estimated number of damaging landslides (5?6 each). Estimated direct costs from future damaging landslides for the entire 10-county region for any future 5-year period are about US $76 million (year 2000 dollars). San Mateo County has the highest estimated costs ($16.62 million), and Solano County has the lowest estimated costs (about $0.90 million). Estimated direct costs are also subdivided into public and private costs.

Economic Evaluation of Manitoba Health Lines in the Management of Congestive Heart Failure

PubMed Central

Cui, Yang; Doupe, Malcolm; Katz, Alan; Nyhof, Paul; Forget, Evelyn L.

2013-01-01

Objective: This one-year study investigated whether the Manitoba Provincial Health Contact program for congestive heart failure (CHF) is a cost-effective intervention relative to the standard treatment. Design: Individual patient-level, randomized clinical trial of cost-effective model using data from the Health Research Data Repository at the Manitoba Centre for Health Policy, University of Manitoba. Methods: A total of 179 patients aged 40 and over with a diagnosis of CHF levels II to IV were recruited from Winnipeg and Central Manitoba and randomized into three treatment groups: one receiving standard care, a second receiving Health Lines (HL) intervention and a third receiving Health Lines intervention plus in-house monitoring (HLM). A cost-effectiveness study was conducted in which outcomes were measured in terms of QALYs derived from the SF-36 and costs using 2005 Canadian dollars. Costs included intervention and healthcare utilization. Bootstrap-resampled incremental cost-effectiveness ratios were computed to take into account the uncertainty related to small sample size. Results: The total per-patient mean costs (including intervention cost) were not significantly different between study groups. Both interventions (HL and HLM) cost less and are more effective than standard care, with HL able to produce an additional QALY relative to HLM for $2,975. The sensitivity analysis revealed that there is an 85.8% probability that HL is cost-effective if decision-makers are willing to pay $50,000. Conclusion: Findings demonstrate that the HL intervention from the Manitoba Provincial Health Contact program for CHF is an optimal intervention strategy for CHF management compared to standard care and HLM. PMID:24359716

A hydrological emulator for global applications – HE v1.0.0

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

Liu, Yaling; Hejazi, Mohamad; Li, Hongyi

While global hydrological models (GHMs) are very useful in exploring water resources and interactions between the Earth and human systems, their use often requires numerous model inputs, complex model calibration, and high computation costs. To overcome these challenges, we construct an efficient open-source and ready-to-use hydrological emulator (HE) that can mimic complex GHMs at a range of spatial scales (e.g., basin, region, globe). More specifically, we construct both a lumped and a distributed scheme of the HE based on the monthly abcd model to explore the tradeoff between computational cost and model fidelity. Model predictability and computational efficiency are evaluatedmore » in simulating global runoff from 1971 to 2010 with both the lumped and distributed schemes. The results are compared against the runoff product from the widely used Variable Infiltration Capacity (VIC) model. Our evaluation indicates that the lumped and distributed schemes present comparable results regarding annual total quantity, spatial pattern, and temporal variation of the major water fluxes (e.g., total runoff, evapotranspiration) across the global 235 basins (e.g., correlation coefficient r between the annual total runoff from either of these two schemes and the VIC is > 0.96), except for several cold (e.g., Arctic, interior Tibet), dry (e.g., North Africa) and mountainous (e.g., Argentina) regions. Compared against the monthly total runoff product from the VIC (aggregated from daily runoff), the global mean Kling–Gupta efficiencies are 0.75 and 0.79 for the lumped and distributed schemes, respectively, with the distributed scheme better capturing spatial heterogeneity. Notably, the computation efficiency of the lumped scheme is 2 orders of magnitude higher than the distributed one and 7 orders more efficient than the VIC model. A case study of uncertainty analysis for the world's 16 basins with top annual streamflow is conducted using 100 000 model simulations, and it demonstrates the lumped scheme's extraordinary advantage in computational efficiency. Lastly, our results suggest that the revised lumped abcd model can serve as an efficient and reasonable HE for complex GHMs and is suitable for broad practical use, and the distributed scheme is also an efficient alternative if spatial heterogeneity is of more interest.« less

[Methodologies for estimating the indirect costs of traffic accidents].

PubMed

Carozzi, Soledad; Elorza, María Eugenia; Moscoso, Nebel Silvana; Ripari, Nadia Vanina

2017-01-01

Traffic accidents generate multiple costs to society, including those associated with the loss of productivity. However, there is no consensus about the most appropriate methodology for estimating those costs. The aim of this study was to review methods for estimating indirect costs applied in crash cost studies. A thematic review of the literature was carried out between 1995 and 2012 in PubMed with the terms cost of illness, indirect cost, road traffic injuries, productivity loss. For the assessment of costs we used the the human capital method, on the basis of the wage-income lost during the time of treatment and recovery of patients and caregivers. In the case of premature death or total disability, the discount rate was applied to obtain the present value of lost future earnings. The computed years arose by subtracting to life expectancy at birth the average age of those affected who are not incorporated into the economically active life. The interest in minimizing the problem is reflected in the evolution of the implemented methodologies. We expect that this review is useful to estimate efficiently the real indirect costs of traffic accidents.

PET-CT in oncological patients: analysis of informal care costs in cost-benefit assessment.

PubMed

Orlacchio, Antonio; Ciarrapico, Anna Micaela; Schillaci, Orazio; Chegai, Fabrizio; Tosti, Daniela; D'Alba, Fabrizio; Guazzaroni, Manlio; Simonetti, Giovanni

2014-04-01

The authors analysed the impact of nonmedical costs (travel, loss of productivity) in an economic analysis of PET-CT (positron-emission tomography-computed tomography) performed with standard contrast-enhanced CT protocols (CECT). From October to November 2009, a total of 100 patients referred to our institute were administered a questionnaire to evaluate the nonmedical costs of PET-CT. In addition, the medical costs (equipment maintenance and depreciation, consumables and staff) related to PET-CT performed with CECT and PET-CT with low-dose nonenhanced CT and separate CECT were also estimated. The medical costs were 919.3 euro for PET-CT with separate CECT, and 801.3 euro for PET-CT with CECT. Therefore, savings of approximately 13% are possible. Moreover, savings in nonmedical costs can be achieved by reducing the number of hospital visits required by patients undergoing diagnostic imaging. Nonmedical costs heavily affect patients' finances as well as having an indirect impact on national health expenditure. Our results show that PET-CT performed with standard dose CECT in a single session provides benefits in terms of both medical and nonmedical costs.

Predicting moisture and economic value of solid forest fuel piles for improving the profitability of bioenergy use

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lauren, Ari; Kinnunen, Jyrki-Pekko; Sikanen, Lauri

2016-04-01

Bioenergy contributes 26 % of the total energy use in Finland, and 60 % of this is provided by solid forest fuel consisting of small stems and logging residues such as tops, branches, roots and stumps. Typically the logging residues are stored as piles on site before transporting to regional combined heat and power plants for combustion. Profitability of forest fuel use depends on smart control of the feedstock. Fuel moisture, dry matter loss, and the rate of interest during the storing are the key variables affecting the economic value of the fuel. The value increases with drying, but decreases with wetting, dry matter loss and positive rate of interest. We compiled a simple simulation model computing the moisture change, dry matter loss, transportation costs and present value of feedstock piles. The model was used to predict the time of the maximum value of the stock, and to compose feedstock allocation strategies under the question: how should we choose the piles and the combustion time so that total energy yield and the economic value of the energy production is maximized? The question was assessed concerning the demand of the energy plant. The model parameterization was based on field scale studies. The initial moisture, and the rates of daily moisture change and dry matter loss in the feedstock piles depended on the day of the year according to empirical field measurements. Time step of the computation was one day. Effects of pile use timing on the total energy yield and profitability was studied using combinatorial optimization. Results show that the storing increases the pile maximum value if the natural drying onsets soon after the harvesting; otherwise dry matter loss and the capital cost of the storing overcome the benefits gained by drying. Optimized timing of the pile use can improve slightly the profitability, based on the increased total energy yield and because the energy unit based transportation costs decrease when water content in the biomass is decreased.

Design synthesis and optimization of joined-wing transports

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Gallman, John W.; Smith, Stephen C.; Kroo, Ilan M.

1990-01-01

A computer program for aircraft synthesis using a numerical optimizer was developed to study the application of the joined-wing configuration to transport aircraft. The structural design algorithm included the effects of secondary bending moments to investigate the possibility of tail buckling and to design joined wings resistant to buckling. The structural weight computed using this method was combined with a statistically-based method to obtain realistic estimates of total lifting surface weight and aircraft empty weight. A variety of 'optimum' joined-wing and conventional aircraft designs were compared on the basis of direct operating cost, gross weight, and cruise drag. The most promising joined-wing designs were found to have a joint location at about 70 percent of the wing semispan. The optimum joined-wing transport is shown to save 1.7 percent in direct operating cost and 11 percent in drag for a 2000 nautical mile transport mission.

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

Lozano, M.C.; Chalfoun, N.V.

Bogota, Colombia, is the third highest capital in South America, its location near the equator assures high altitudes over the horizon and almost 5 hours of daily mean sunshine. Since 1981, efforts for using natural energy instead of nonrenewable fuel have been targeted to Colombia`s residential construction industry. This paper focuses on a computer aided design process for passive solar low-income row housing in Bogota. Thermal comfort for this tropical climate has been achieved through employing ``Guadua,`` a strong bamboo specie,as an alternative wall system to the traditional brick, adobe, or concrete structures. Through computer analysis, several energy conservation andmore » passive solar strategies have been optimized for a case study row housing type common to the region. The load savings compared to a 6 inch CMU house totaled 72%, while the operating cost has been reduced by 71%. Furthermore, this lightweight and inexpensive ``Guadua`` material has reduced the construction cost by 30%.« less

Optimal shielding design for minimum materials cost or mass

DOE PAGES

Woolley, Robert D.

2015-12-02

The mathematical underpinnings of cost optimal radiation shielding designs based on an extension of optimal control theory are presented, a heuristic algorithm to iteratively solve the resulting optimal design equations is suggested, and computational results for a simple test case are discussed. A typical radiation shielding design problem can have infinitely many solutions, all satisfying the problem's specified set of radiation attenuation requirements. Each such design has its own total materials cost. For a design to be optimal, no admissible change in its deployment of shielding materials can result in a lower cost. This applies in particular to very smallmore » changes, which can be restated using the calculus of variations as the Euler-Lagrange equations. Furthermore, the associated Hamiltonian function and application of Pontryagin's theorem lead to conditions for a shield to be optimal.« less

Municipal solid waste transportation optimisation with vehicle routing approach: case study of Pontianak City, West Kalimantan

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kamal, M. A.; Youlla, D.

2018-03-01

Municipal solid waste (MSW) transportation in Pontianak City becomes an issue that need to be tackled by the relevant agencies. The MSW transportation service in Pontianak City currently requires very high resources especially in vehicle usage. Increasing the number of fleets has not been able to increase service levels while garbage volume is growing every year along with population growth. In this research, vehicle routing optimization approach was used to find optimal and efficient routes of vehicle cost in transporting garbage from several Temporary Garbage Dump (TGD) to Final Garbage Dump (FGD). One of the problems of MSW transportation is that there is a TGD which exceed the the vehicle capacity and must be visited more than once. The optimal computation results suggest that the municipal authorities only use 3 vehicles from 5 vehicles provided with the total minimum cost of IDR. 778,870. The computation time to search optimal route and minimal cost is very time consuming. This problem is influenced by the number of constraints and decision variables that have are integer value.

Ambient Human-to-Human Communication

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Härmä, Aki

In the current technological landscape colored by environmental and security concerns the logic of replacing traveling by technical means of communications is undisputable. For example, consider a comparison between a normal family car and a video conference system with two laptop computers connected over the Internet. The power consumption of the car is approximately 25 kW while the two computers and their share of the power consumption in the intermediate routers in total is in the range of 50 W. Therefore, to meet a person using a car at an one hour driving distance is equivalent to 1000 hours of video conference. The difference in the costs is also increasing. An estimate on the same cost difference between travel and video conference twenty years ago gave only three days of continuous video conference for the same situation [29]. The cost of video conference depends on the duration of the session while traveling depends only on the distance. However, in a strict economical and environmental sense even a five minute trip by a car in 2008 becomes more economical than a video conference only when the meeting lasts more than three and half days.

Saving lives, money and resources: drug and CABG/PCI use after myocardial infarction in a Swedish record-linkage study.

PubMed

Wilhelmsen, Lars; Welin, Lennart; Odén, Anders; Björnberg, Arne

2010-04-01

Drug costs are increasing despite the introduction of cheaper generic drugs. The aim of the present study was to analyse the entire costs of hospital care, out-patient care, and the cost of drugs for 16 months following a myocardial infarction (MI) to see to what extent drug costs contribute to the overall costs of care. Diagnoses and costs for care as well as mortality data obtained from the Västra Götaland Region, Sweden, and drug costs from the Swedish Board of Health and Welfare, were merged in a computer file. Patients registered from 1 July 2005 to 30 June 2006 were followed from 28 days after an MI, with follow-up until 31 October 2006. Of 4,725 patients, 711 died before the start of the study and 721 during follow-up. Higher age [hazard ratio (HR, 95%CI) = 1.06 (1.05-1.07)], previous MI [HR = 1.31 (1.13-1.53)] and diabetes mellitus [HR = 1.34 (1.13-1.58)] were associated with increased mortality, which decreased with coronary interventions: CABG/PCI [HR = 0.19 (0.14-0.27)]. In a multivariable analysis, mortality was lower for patients taking simvastatin [HR = 0.62 (0.50-0.76)] and clopidogrel [HR = 0.58 (0.46-0.74)]. Costs for out-patient care accounted for 25% and drugs for 5% of total costs. If patients not treated with simvastatin or clopidogrel had received these drugs, an additional 154-306 lives might have been saved. Drug costs would be higher, but total costs lower. Thus, even expensive drugs may reduce overall costs.

Multigrid preconditioned conjugate-gradient method for large-scale wave-front reconstruction.

PubMed

Gilles, Luc; Vogel, Curtis R; Ellerbroek, Brent L

2002-09-01

We introduce a multigrid preconditioned conjugate-gradient (MGCG) iterative scheme for computing open-loop wave-front reconstructors for extreme adaptive optics systems. We present numerical simulations for a 17-m class telescope with n = 48756 sensor measurement grid points within the aperture, which indicate that our MGCG method has a rapid convergence rate for a wide range of subaperture average slope measurement signal-to-noise ratios. The total computational cost is of order n log n. Hence our scheme provides for fast wave-front simulation and control in large-scale adaptive optics systems.

Energy conserving, linear scaling Born-Oppenheimer molecular dynamics.

PubMed

Cawkwell, M J; Niklasson, Anders M N

2012-10-07

Born-Oppenheimer molecular dynamics simulations with long-term conservation of the total energy and a computational cost that scales linearly with system size have been obtained simultaneously. Linear scaling with a low pre-factor is achieved using density matrix purification with sparse matrix algebra and a numerical threshold on matrix elements. The extended Lagrangian Born-Oppenheimer molecular dynamics formalism [A. M. N. Niklasson, Phys. Rev. Lett. 100, 123004 (2008)] yields microcanonical trajectories with the approximate forces obtained from the linear scaling method that exhibit no systematic drift over hundreds of picoseconds and which are indistinguishable from trajectories computed using exact forces.

12 CFR 602.12 - Fees.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-01-01

... of the employee doing the work. (2) For computer searches for records, the direct costs of computer... $15.00. Fee Amounts Table Type of fee Amount of fee Manual Search and Review Pro rated Salary Costs. Computer Search Direct Costs. Photocopy $0.15 a page. Other Reproduction Costs Direct Costs. Elective...

Cost-Utility Analysis of Pedicle Screw Removal After Successful Posterior Instrumented Fusion in Thoracolumbar Burst Fractures.

PubMed

Lee, Han-Dong; Jeon, Chang-Hoon; Chung, Nam-Su; Seo, Young-Wook

2017-08-01

A cost-utility analysis (CUA). The aim of this study was to determine the cost-effectiveness of pedicle screw removal after posterior fusion in thoracolumbar burst fractures. Pedicle screw instrumentation is a standard fixation method for unstable thoracolumbar burst fracture. However, removal of the pedicle screw after successful fusion remains controversial because the clinical benefits remain unclear. CUA can help clinicians make appropriate decisions about optimal health care for pedicle screw removal after successful fusion in thoracolumbar burst fractures. We conducted a single-center, retrospective, longitudinal matched-cohort study of prospectively collected outcomes. In total, 88 consecutive patients who had undergone pedicle screw instrumentation for thoracolumbar burst fracture with successful fusion confirmed by computed tomography (CT) were used in this study. In total, 45 patients wanted to undergo implant removal surgery (R group), and 43 decided not to remove the implant (NR group). A CUA was conducted from the health care perspective. The direct costs of health care were obtained from the medical bill of each patient. Changes in health-related quality of life (HRQoL) scores, validated by Short Form 6D, were used to calculate quality-adjusted life-years (QALYs). Total costs and gained QALY were calculated at 1 year (1 year) and 2 years (2 years) compared with baseline. Results are expressed as an incremental cost-effectiveness ratio (ICER). Different discount rates (0%, 3%, and 5%) were applied to both cost and QALY for sensitivity analysis. Baseline patient variables were similar between the two groups (all P > 0.05). The additional benefits of implant removal (0.201 QALY at 2 years) were achieved with additional costs ($2541 at 2 years), equating to an ICER of $12,641/QALY. On the basis of the different discount rates, the robustness of our study's results was also determined. Implant removal after successful fusion in a thoracolumbar burst fracture is cost-effective until postoperative year 2. 3.

A Budget Impact Analysis of Newly Available Hepatitis C Therapeutics and the Financial Burden on a State Correctional System.

PubMed

Nguyen, John T; Rich, Josiah D; Brockmann, Bradley W; Vohr, Fred; Spaulding, Anne; Montague, Brian T

2015-08-01

Hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection continues to disproportionately affect incarcerated populations. New HCV drugs present opportunities and challenges to address HCV in corrections. The goal of this study was to evaluate the impact of the treatment costs for HCV infection in a state correctional population through a budget impact analysis comparing differing treatment strategies. Electronic and paper medical records were reviewed to estimate the prevalence of hepatitis C within the Rhode Island Department of Corrections. Three treatment strategies were evaluated as follows: (1) treating all chronically infected persons, (2) treating only patients with demonstrated fibrosis, and (3) treating only patients with advanced fibrosis. Budget impact was computed as the percentage of pharmacy and overall healthcare expenditures accrued by total drug costs assuming entirely interferon-free therapy. Sensitivity analyses assessed potential variance in costs related to variability in HCV prevalence, genotype, estimated variation in market pricing, length of stay for the sentenced population, and uptake of newly available regimens. Chronic HCV prevalence was estimated at 17% of the total population. Treating all sentenced inmates with at least 6 months remaining of their sentence would cost about $34 million-13 times the pharmacy budget and almost twice the overall healthcare budget. Treating inmates with advanced fibrosis would cost about $15 million. A hypothetical 50% reduction in total drug costs for future therapies could cost $17 million to treat all eligible inmates. With immense costs projected with new treatment, it is unlikely that correctional facilities will have the capacity to treat all those afflicted with HCV. Alternative payment strategies in collaboration with outside programs may be necessary to curb this epidemic. In order to improve care and treatment delivery, drug costs also need to be seriously reevaluated to be more accessible and equitable now that HCV is more curable.

Real-time POD-CFD Wind-Load Calculator for PV Systems

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

Huayamave, Victor; Divo, Eduardo; Ceballos, Andres

The primary objective of this project is to create an accurate web-based real-time wind-load calculator. This is of paramount importance for (1) the rapid and accurate assessments of the uplift and downforce loads on a PV mounting system, (2) identifying viable solutions from available mounting systems, and therefore helping reduce the cost of mounting hardware and installation. Wind loading calculations for structures are currently performed according to the American Society of Civil Engineers/ Structural Engineering Institute Standard ASCE/SEI 7; the values in this standard were calculated from simplified models that do not necessarily take into account relevant characteristics such asmore » those from full 3D effects, end effects, turbulence generation and dissipation, as well as minor effects derived from shear forces on installation brackets and other accessories. This standard does not include provisions that address the special requirements of rooftop PV systems, and attempts to apply this standard may lead to significant design errors as wind loads are incorrectly estimated. Therefore, an accurate calculator would be of paramount importance for the preliminary assessments of the uplift and downforce loads on a PV mounting system, identifying viable solutions from available mounting systems, and therefore helping reduce the cost of the mounting system and installation. The challenge is that although a full-fledged three-dimensional computational fluid dynamics (CFD) analysis would properly and accurately capture the complete physical effects of air flow over PV systems, it would be impractical for this tool, which is intended to be a real-time web-based calculator. CFD routinely requires enormous computation times to arrive at solutions that can be deemed accurate and grid-independent even in powerful and massively parallel computer platforms. This work is expected not only to accelerate solar deployment nationwide, but also help reach the SunShot Initiative goals of reducing the total installed cost of solar energy systems by 75%. The largest percentage of the total installed cost of solar energy system is associated with balance of system cost, with up to 40% going to “soft” costs; which include customer acquisition, financing, contracting, permitting, interconnection, inspection, installation, performance, operations, and maintenance. The calculator that is being developed will provide wind loads in real-time for any solar system designs and suggest the proper installation configuration and hardware; and therefore, it is anticipated to reduce system design, installation and permitting costs.« less

Cancer Diagnosis Epigenomics Scientific Workflow Scheduling in the Cloud Computing Environment Using an Improved PSO Algorithm

PubMed

N, Sadhasivam; R, Balamurugan; M, Pandi

2018-01-27

Objective: Epigenetic modifications involving DNA methylation and histone statud are responsible for the stable maintenance of cellular phenotypes. Abnormalities may be causally involved in cancer development and therefore could have diagnostic potential. The field of epigenomics refers to all epigenetic modifications implicated in control of gene expression, with a focus on better understanding of human biology in both normal and pathological states. Epigenomics scientific workflow is essentially a data processing pipeline to automate the execution of various genome sequencing operations or tasks. Cloud platform is a popular computing platform for deploying large scale epigenomics scientific workflow. Its dynamic environment provides various resources to scientific users on a pay-per-use billing model. Scheduling epigenomics scientific workflow tasks is a complicated problem in cloud platform. We here focused on application of an improved particle swam optimization (IPSO) algorithm for this purpose. Methods: The IPSO algorithm was applied to find suitable resources and allocate epigenomics tasks so that the total cost was minimized for detection of epigenetic abnormalities of potential application for cancer diagnosis. Result: The results showed that IPSO based task to resource mapping reduced total cost by 6.83 percent as compared to the traditional PSO algorithm. Conclusion: The results for various cancer diagnosis tasks showed that IPSO based task to resource mapping can achieve better costs when compared to PSO based mapping for epigenomics scientific application workflow. Creative Commons Attribution License

Optimization and life-cycle cost of health clinic PV system for a rural area in southern Iraq using HOMER software

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

Al-Karaghouli, Ali; Kazmerski, L.L.

2010-04-15

This paper addresses the need for electricity of rural areas in southern Iraq and proposes a photovoltaic (PV) solar system to power a health clinic in that region. The total daily health clinic load is 31.6 kW h and detailed loads are listed. The National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) optimization computer model for distributed power, ''HOMER,'' is used to estimate the system size and its life-cycle cost. The analysis shows that the optimal system's initial cost, net present cost, and electricity cost is US$ 50,700, US$ 60,375, and US$ 0.238/kW h, respectively. These values for the PV system are comparedmore » with those of a generator alone used to supply the load. We found that the initial cost, net present cost of the generator system, and electricity cost are US$ 4500, US$ 352,303, and US$ 1.332/kW h, respectively. We conclude that using the PV system is justified on humanitarian, technical, and economic grounds. (author)« less

COSTMODL: An automated software development cost estimation tool

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Roush, George B.

1991-01-01

The cost of developing computer software continues to consume an increasing portion of many organizations' total budgets, both in the public and private sector. As this trend develops, the capability to produce reliable estimates of the effort and schedule required to develop a candidate software product takes on increasing importance. The COSTMODL program was developed to provide an in-house capability to perform development cost estimates for NASA software projects. COSTMODL is an automated software development cost estimation tool which incorporates five cost estimation algorithms including the latest models for the Ada language and incrementally developed products. The principal characteristic which sets COSTMODL apart from other software cost estimation programs is its capacity to be completely customized to a particular environment. The estimation equations can be recalibrated to reflect the programmer productivity characteristics demonstrated by the user's organization, and the set of significant factors which effect software development costs can be customized to reflect any unique properties of the user's development environment. Careful use of a capability such as COSTMODL can significantly reduce the risk of cost overruns and failed projects.

21 CFR 1.99 - Costs chargeable in connection with relabeling and reconditioning inadmissible imports.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... officer (GS-11/4) and the analyst (GS-12/4) is computed as follows: Hours Gross number of working hours in... d 208 Sick leave—13 d 104 Total 384 Net number of working hours 1,696 Gross number of working hours in 52 40-hr weeks 2,080 Working hour equivalent of Government contributions for employee retirement...

Space tug economic analysis study. Volume 2: Tug concepts analysis. Part 1: Overall approach and data generation

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1972-01-01

An economic analysis of space tug operations is presented. The subjects discussed are: (1) data base for orbit injection stages, (2) data base for reusable space tug, (3) performance equations, (4) data integration and interpretation, (5) tug performance and mission model accomodation, (6) total program cost, (7) payload analysis, (8) computer software, and (9) comparison of tug concepts.

Logistics Control Facility: A Normative Model for Total Asset Visibility in the Air Force Logistics System

DTIC Science & Technology

1994-09-01

IIssue Computers, information systems, and communication systems are being increasingly used in transportation, warehousing, order processing , materials...inventory levels, reduced order processing times, reduced order processing costs, and increased customer satisfaction. While purchasing and transportation...process, the speed in which crders are processed would increase significantly. Lowering the order processing time in turn lowers the lead time, which in

Selective, but Only if It Is Free: Children Trust Inaccurate Individuals More When Alternative Sources Are Costly

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Brosseau-Liard, Patricia E.

2014-01-01

The present research examines the effect of the costliness of an information source on children's selective learning. In three experiments (total N?=?112), 4-to 7-year-olds were given the opportunity to acquire and endorse information from one of two sources. One source, a computer, was described as always accurate; the other source, a…

Prescribing and formulating neonatal intravenous feeding solutions by microcomputer.

PubMed Central

MacMahon, P

1984-01-01

This paper describes a computer programme for a low cost microcomputer designed to assist in the task of administering total parenteral nutrition to neonates: no knowledge of computers is necessary to operate the system. The programme displays recommended values for each of the total parenteral nutrition constituents that must be prescribed, based on detailed analysis of all the pertinent variables. The recommended values may be rejected but they do provide a useful prompt, especially for the more junior doctors. The programme includes a number of safeguards that protect against entering potentially dangerous values. As soon as the operator has completed the procedure of entering total parenteral nutrition requirements the calculations necessary to formulate a solution containing these are automatically performed. The print out contains this data plus instructions on the infusion rate and an analysis of the formulation's calorific content. This system makes it easier to vary the quantity of individual total parenteral nutrition constituents and time has been saved which was previously wasted performing laborious calculations. One of the most important contributions has been the virtual elimination of errors in the complex task of prescribing and formulating total parenteral nutrition for sick neonates. PMID:6430246

Out-of-range international normalized ratio values and healthcare cost among new warfarin patients with non-valvular atrial fibrillation.

PubMed

Nelson, Winnie W; Wang, Li; Baser, Onur; Damaraju, C V; Schein, Jeffrey R

2015-05-01

Patients with out-of-range international normalized ratio (INR) values <2.0 and >3.0 have been associated with increased risk of thromboembolic and bleeding events. INR monitoring is costly, because of associated physician and nurse time, laboratory resource use, and dose adjustments. This study assessed the healthcare cost burden associated with out-of-range INR among warfarin initiator patients diagnosed with non-valvular atrial fibrillation (NVAF) in the US Veterans Health Administration (VHA) population. Adult NVAF patients (≥18 years) initiating warfarin were selected from the VHA dataset for the study period October 1, 2007-September 30, 2012. Only valid INR measurements (0.5 ≤ INR ≤ 20) were examined for the follow-up period, from the index date (warfarin initiation date) until the end of warfarin exposure or death. All-cause healthcare costs within 30 days were measured starting from the second month (31 days post-index date) to the end of the study period. Costs for inpatient stays, emergency room, outpatient facility, physician office visits, and other services were computed separately. Multiple regression was performed using the generalized linear model for overall cost analysis. In total, 29,463 patients were included in the study sample. Mean costs for out-of-range INR ranged from $3419 to $5126. Inpatient, outpatient, outpatient pharmacy, and total costs were significantly higher after patients experienced out-of-range results (INR < 2, INR > 3), compared with in-range INR (2 ≤ INR ≤ 3). When exposed to out-of-range INR, patients also incurred higher mean total costs within 2-6 months ($3840-$5820) than after the first 6 months ($2789-$3503) of warfarin therapy. In the VHA population, INR measures outside of the 2-3 range were associated with significantly higher healthcare costs. Increased costs were especially apparent when INR values were below 2, although INR measures above 3 were also associated with higher costs relative to in-range values.

Accelerating Dust Storm Simulation by Balancing Task Allocation in Parallel Computing Environment

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gui, Z.; Yang, C.; XIA, J.; Huang, Q.; YU, M.

2013-12-01

Dust storm has serious negative impacts on environment, human health, and assets. The continuing global climate change has increased the frequency and intensity of dust storm in the past decades. To better understand and predict the distribution, intensity and structure of dust storm, a series of dust storm models have been developed, such as Dust Regional Atmospheric Model (DREAM), the NMM meteorological module (NMM-dust) and Chinese Unified Atmospheric Chemistry Environment for Dust (CUACE/Dust). The developments and applications of these models have contributed significantly to both scientific research and our daily life. However, dust storm simulation is a data and computing intensive process. Normally, a simulation for a single dust storm event may take several days or hours to run. It seriously impacts the timeliness of prediction and potential applications. To speed up the process, high performance computing is widely adopted. By partitioning a large study area into small subdomains according to their geographic location and executing them on different computing nodes in a parallel fashion, the computing performance can be significantly improved. Since spatiotemporal correlations exist in the geophysical process of dust storm simulation, each subdomain allocated to a node need to communicate with other geographically adjacent subdomains to exchange data. Inappropriate allocations may introduce imbalance task loads and unnecessary communications among computing nodes. Therefore, task allocation method is the key factor, which may impact the feasibility of the paralleling. The allocation algorithm needs to carefully leverage the computing cost and communication cost for each computing node to minimize total execution time and reduce overall communication cost for the entire system. This presentation introduces two algorithms for such allocation and compares them with evenly distributed allocation method. Specifically, 1) In order to get optimized solutions, a quadratic programming based modeling method is proposed. This algorithm performs well with small amount of computing tasks. However, its efficiency decreases significantly as the subdomain number and computing node number increase. 2) To compensate performance decreasing for large scale tasks, a K-Means clustering based algorithm is introduced. Instead of dedicating to get optimized solutions, this method can get relatively good feasible solutions within acceptable time. However, it may introduce imbalance communication for nodes or node-isolated subdomains. This research shows both two algorithms have their own strength and weakness for task allocation. A combination of the two algorithms is under study to obtain a better performance. Keywords: Scheduling; Parallel Computing; Load Balance; Optimization; Cost Model

Efficient tiled calculation of over-10-gigapixel holograms using ray-wavefront conversion.

PubMed

Igarashi, Shunsuke; Nakamura, Tomoya; Matsushima, Kyoji; Yamaguchi, Masahiro

2018-04-16

In the calculation of large-scale computer-generated holograms, an approach called "tiling," which divides the hologram plane into small rectangles, is often employed due to limitations on computational memory. However, the total amount of computational complexity severely increases with the number of divisions. In this paper, we propose an efficient method for calculating tiled large-scale holograms using ray-wavefront conversion. In experiments, the effectiveness of the proposed method was verified by comparing its calculation cost with that using the previous method. Additionally, a hologram of 128K × 128K pixels was calculated and fabricated by a laser-lithography system, and a high-quality 105 mm × 105 mm 3D image including complicated reflection and translucency was optically reconstructed.

Cost-effectiveness of breast cancer screening policies using simulation.

PubMed

Gocgun, Y; Banjevic, D; Taghipour, S; Montgomery, N; Harvey, B J; Jardine, A K S; Miller, A B

2015-08-01

In this paper, we study breast cancer screening policies using computer simulation. We developed a multi-state Markov model for breast cancer progression, considering both the screening and treatment stages of breast cancer. The parameters of our model were estimated through data from the Canadian National Breast Cancer Screening Study as well as data in the relevant literature. Using computer simulation, we evaluated various screening policies to study the impact of mammography screening for age-based subpopulations in Canada. We also performed sensitivity analysis to examine the impact of certain parameters on number of deaths and total costs. The analysis comparing screening policies reveals that a policy in which women belonging to the 40-49 age group are not screened, whereas those belonging to the 50-59 and 60-69 age groups are screened once every 5 years, outperforms others with respect to cost per life saved. Our analysis also indicates that increasing the screening frequencies for the 50-59 and 60-69 age groups decrease mortality, and that the average number of deaths generally decreases with an increase in screening frequency. We found that screening annually for all age groups is associated with the highest costs per life saved. Our analysis thus reveals that cost per life saved increases with an increase in screening frequency. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

A cost/benefit analysis of commercial fusion-fission hybrid reactor development

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kostoff, Ronald N.

1983-04-01

A simple algorithm was developed that allows rapid computation of the ratio, R, of present worth of benefits to present worth of hybrid R&D program costs as a function of potential hybrid unit electricity cost savings, discount rate, electricity demand growth rate, total hybrid R&D program cost, and time to complete a demonstration reactor. In the sensitivity study, these variables were assigned nominal values (unit electricity cost savings of 4 mills/kW-hr, discount rate of 4%/year, growth rate of 2.25%/year, total R&D program cost of 20 billion, and time to complete a demonstration reactor of 30 years), and the variable of interest was varied about its nominal value. Results show that R increases with decreasing discount rate and increasing unit electricity savings and ranges from 4 to 94 as discount rate ranges from 5 to 3%/year and unit electricity savings range from 2 to 6 mills/kW-hr. R increases with increasing growth rate and ranges from 3 to 187 as growth rate ranges from 1 to 3.5%/year and unit electricity cost savings range from 2 to 6 mills/kW-hr. R attains a maximum value when plotted against time to complete a demonstration reactor. The location of this maximum value occurs at shorter completion times as discount rate increases, and this optimal completion time ranges from 20 years for a discount rate of 4%/year to 45 years for a discount rate of 3%/year.

Time-driven activity-based costing of low-dose-rate and high-dose-rate brachytherapy for low-risk prostate cancer.

PubMed

Ilg, Annette M; Laviana, Aaron A; Kamrava, Mitchell; Veruttipong, Darlene; Steinberg, Michael; Park, Sang-June; Burke, Michael A; Niedzwiecki, Douglas; Kupelian, Patrick A; Saigal, Christopher

Cost estimates through traditional hospital accounting systems are often arbitrary and ambiguous. We used time-driven activity-based costing (TDABC) to determine the true cost of low-dose-rate (LDR) and high-dose-rate (HDR) brachytherapy for prostate cancer and demonstrate opportunities for cost containment at an academic referral center. We implemented TDABC for patients treated with I-125, preplanned LDR and computed tomography based HDR brachytherapy with two implants from initial consultation through 12-month followup. We constructed detailed process maps for provision of both HDR and LDR. Personnel, space, equipment, and material costs of each step were identified and used to derive capacity cost rates, defined as price per minute. Each capacity cost rate was then multiplied by the relevant process time and products were summed to determine total cost of care. The calculated cost to deliver HDR was greater than LDR by $2,668.86 ($9,538 vs. $6,869). The first and second HDR treatment day cost $3,999.67 and $3,955.67, whereas LDR was delivered on one treatment day and cost $3,887.55. The greatest overall cost driver for both LDR and HDR was personnel at 65.6% ($4,506.82) and 67.0% ($6,387.27) of the total cost. After personnel costs, disposable materials contributed the second most for LDR ($1,920.66, 28.0%) and for HDR ($2,295.94, 24.0%). With TDABC, the true costs to deliver LDR and HDR from the health system perspective were derived. Analysis by physicians and hospital administrators regarding the cost of care afforded redesign opportunities including delivering HDR as one implant. Our work underscores the need to assess clinical outcomes to understand the true difference in value between these modalities. Copyright © 2016 American Brachytherapy Society. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

OPTIMAL AIRCRAFT TRAJECTORIES FOR SPECIFIED RANGE

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lee, H.

1994-01-01

For an aircraft operating over a fixed range, the operating costs are basically a sum of fuel cost and time cost. While minimum fuel and minimum time trajectories are relatively easy to calculate, the determination of a minimum cost trajectory can be a complex undertaking. This computer program was developed to optimize trajectories with respect to a cost function based on a weighted sum of fuel cost and time cost. As a research tool, the program could be used to study various characteristics of optimum trajectories and their comparison to standard trajectories. It might also be used to generate a model for the development of an airborne trajectory optimization system. The program could be incorporated into an airline flight planning system, with optimum flight plans determined at takeoff time for the prevailing flight conditions. The use of trajectory optimization could significantly reduce the cost for a given aircraft mission. The algorithm incorporated in the program assumes that a trajectory consists of climb, cruise, and descent segments. The optimization of each segment is not done independently, as in classical procedures, but is performed in a manner which accounts for interaction between the segments. This is accomplished by the application of optimal control theory. The climb and descent profiles are generated by integrating a set of kinematic and dynamic equations, where the total energy of the aircraft is the independent variable. At each energy level of the climb and descent profiles, the air speed and power setting necessary for an optimal trajectory are determined. The variational Hamiltonian of the problem consists of the rate of change of cost with respect to total energy and a term dependent on the adjoint variable, which is identical to the optimum cruise cost at a specified altitude. This variable uniquely specifies the optimal cruise energy, cruise altitude, cruise Mach number, and, indirectly, the climb and descent profiles. If the optimum cruise cost is specified, an optimum trajectory can easily be generated; however, the range obtained for a particular optimum cruise cost is not known a priori. For short range flights, the program iteratively varies the optimum cruise cost until the computed range converges to the specified range. For long-range flights, iteration is unnecessary since the specified range can be divided into a cruise segment distance and full climb and descent distances. The user must supply the program with engine fuel flow rate coefficients and an aircraft aerodynamic model. The program currently includes coefficients for the Pratt-Whitney JT8D-7 engine and an aerodynamic model for the Boeing 727. Input to the program consists of the flight range to be covered and the prevailing flight conditions including pressure, temperature, and wind profiles. Information output by the program includes: optimum cruise tables at selected weights, optimal cruise quantities as a function of cruise weight and cruise distance, climb and descent profiles, and a summary of the complete synthesized optimal trajectory. This program is written in FORTRAN IV for batch execution and has been implemented on a CDC 6000 series computer with a central memory requirement of approximately 100K (octal) of 60 bit words. This aircraft trajectory optimization program was developed in 1979.

The Hidden Costs of Owning a Microcomputer.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

McDole, Thomas L.

Before purchasing computer hardware, individuals must consider the costs associated with the setup and operation of a microcomputer system. Included among the initial costs of purchasing a computer are the costs of the computer, one or more disk drives, a monitor, and a printer as well as the costs of such optional peripheral devices as a plotter…

Improved parallel data partitioning by nested dissection with applications to information retrieval.

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

Wolf, Michael M.; Chevalier, Cedric; Boman, Erik Gunnar

The computational work in many information retrieval and analysis algorithms is based on sparse linear algebra. Sparse matrix-vector multiplication is a common kernel in many of these computations. Thus, an important related combinatorial problem in parallel computing is how to distribute the matrix and the vectors among processors so as to minimize the communication cost. We focus on minimizing the total communication volume while keeping the computation balanced across processes. In [1], the first two authors presented a new 2D partitioning method, the nested dissection partitioning algorithm. In this paper, we improve on that algorithm and show that it ismore » a good option for data partitioning in information retrieval. We also show partitioning time can be substantially reduced by using the SCOTCH software, and quality improves in some cases, too.« less

Modeling the Unites States government's economic cost of noise-induced hearing loss for a military population.

PubMed

Tufts, Jennifer B; Weathersby, Paul K; Rodriguez, Francisco A

2010-05-01

The purpose of this paper is to demonstrate the feasibility and utility of developing economic cost models for noise-induced hearing loss (NIHL). First, we outline an economic model of NIHL for a population of US Navy sailors with an "industrial"-type noise exposure. Next, we describe the effect on NIHL-related cost of varying the two central model inputs--the noise-exposure level and the duration of exposure. Such an analysis can help prioritize promising areas, to which limited resources to reduce NIHL-related costs should be devoted. NIHL-related costs borne by the US government were computed on a yearly basis using a finite element approach that took into account varying levels of susceptibility to NIHL. Predicted hearing thresholds for the population were computed with ANSI S3.44-1996 and then used as the basis for the calculation of NIHL-related costs. Annual and cumulative costs were tracked. Noise-exposure level and duration were systematically varied to determine their effects on the expected lifetime NIHL-related cost of a specific US Navy sailor population. Our nominal noise-exposure case [93 dB(A) for six years] yielded a total expected lifetime cost of US $13,472 per sailor, with plausible lower and upper bounds of US $2,500 and US $26,000. Starting with the nominal case, a decrease of 50% in exposure level or duration would yield cost savings of approximately 23% and 19%, respectively. We concluded that a reduction in noise level would be more somewhat more cost-effective than the same percentage reduction in years of exposure. Our economic cost model can be used to estimate the changes in NIHL-related costs that would result from changes in noise-exposure level and/or duration for a single military population. Although the model is limited at present, suggestions are provided for adapting it to civilian populations.

Inexpensive and Highly Reproducible Cloud-Based Variant Calling of 2,535 Human Genomes

PubMed Central

Shringarpure, Suyash S.; Carroll, Andrew; De La Vega, Francisco M.; Bustamante, Carlos D.

2015-01-01

Population scale sequencing of whole human genomes is becoming economically feasible; however, data management and analysis remains a formidable challenge for many research groups. Large sequencing studies, like the 1000 Genomes Project, have improved our understanding of human demography and the effect of rare genetic variation in disease. Variant calling on datasets of hundreds or thousands of genomes is time-consuming, expensive, and not easily reproducible given the myriad components of a variant calling pipeline. Here, we describe a cloud-based pipeline for joint variant calling in large samples using the Real Time Genomics population caller. We deployed the population caller on the Amazon cloud with the DNAnexus platform in order to achieve low-cost variant calling. Using our pipeline, we were able to identify 68.3 million variants in 2,535 samples from Phase 3 of the 1000 Genomes Project. By performing the variant calling in a parallel manner, the data was processed within 5 days at a compute cost of $7.33 per sample (a total cost of $18,590 for completed jobs and $21,805 for all jobs). Analysis of cost dependence and running time on the data size suggests that, given near linear scalability, cloud computing can be a cheap and efficient platform for analyzing even larger sequencing studies in the future. PMID:26110529

A single-vendor and a single-buyer integrated inventory model with ordering cost reduction dependent on lead time

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Vijayashree, M.; Uthayakumar, R.

2017-09-01

Lead time is one of the major limits that affect planning at every stage of the supply chain system. In this paper, we study a continuous review inventory model. This paper investigates the ordering cost reductions are dependent on lead time. This study addressed two-echelon supply chain problem consisting of a single vendor and a single buyer. The main contribution of this study is that the integrated total cost of the single vendor and the single buyer integrated system is analyzed by adopting two different (linear and logarithmic) types ordering cost reductions act dependent on lead time. In both cases, we develop effective solution procedures for finding the optimal solution and then illustrative numerical examples are given to illustrate the results. The solution procedure is to determine the optimal solutions of order quantity, ordering cost, lead time and the number of deliveries from the single vendor and the single buyer in one production run, so that the integrated total cost incurred has the minimum value. Ordering cost reduction is the main aspect of the proposed model. A numerical example is given to validate the model. Numerical example solved by using Matlab software. The mathematical model is solved analytically by minimizing the integrated total cost. Furthermore, the sensitivity analysis is included and the numerical examples are given to illustrate the results. The results obtained in this paper are illustrated with the help of numerical examples. The sensitivity of the proposed model has been checked with respect to the various major parameters of the system. Results reveal that the proposed integrated inventory model is more applicable for the supply chain manufacturing system. For each case, an algorithm procedure of finding the optimal solution is developed. Finally, the graphical representation is presented to illustrate the proposed model and also include the computer flowchart in each model.

Wastewater Treatment Costs and Outlays in Organic Petrochemicals: Standards Versus Taxes With Methodology Suggestions for Marginal Cost Pricing and Analysis

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Thompson, Russell G.; Singleton, F. D., Jr.

1986-04-01

With the methodology recommended by Baumol and Oates, comparable estimates of wastewater treatment costs and industry outlays are developed for effluent standard and effluent tax instruments for pollution abatement in five hypothetical organic petrochemicals (olefins) plants. The computational method uses a nonlinear simulation model for wastewater treatment to estimate the system state inputs for linear programming cost estimation, following a practice developed in a National Science Foundation (Research Applied to National Needs) study at the University of Houston and used to estimate Houston Ship Channel pollution abatement costs for the National Commission on Water Quality. Focusing on best practical and best available technology standards, with effluent taxes adjusted to give nearly equal pollution discharges, shows that average daily treatment costs (and the confidence intervals for treatment cost) would always be less for the effluent tax than for the effluent standard approach. However, industry's total outlay for these treatment costs, plus effluent taxes, would always be greater for the effluent tax approach than the total treatment costs would be for the effluent standard approach. Thus the practical necessity of showing smaller outlays as a prerequisite for a policy change toward efficiency dictates the need to link the economics at the microlevel with that at the macrolevel. Aggregation of the plants into a programming modeling basis for individual sectors and for the economy would provide a sound basis for effective policy reform, because the opportunity costs of the salient regulatory policies would be captured. Then, the government's policymakers would have the informational insights necessary to legislate more efficient environmental policies in light of the wealth distribution effects.

Dynamic load balance scheme for the DSMC algorithm

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

Li, Jin; Geng, Xiangren; Jiang, Dingwu

The direct simulation Monte Carlo (DSMC) algorithm, devised by Bird, has been used over a wide range of various rarified flow problems in the past 40 years. While the DSMC is suitable for the parallel implementation on powerful multi-processor architecture, it also introduces a large load imbalance across the processor array, even for small examples. The load imposed on a processor by a DSMC calculation is determined to a large extent by the total of simulator particles upon it. Since most flows are impulsively started with initial distribution of particles which is surely quite different from the steady state, themore » total of simulator particles will change dramatically. The load balance based upon an initial distribution of particles will break down as the steady state of flow is reached. The load imbalance and huge computational cost of DSMC has limited its application to rarefied or simple transitional flows. In this paper, by taking advantage of METIS, a software for partitioning unstructured graphs, and taking the total of simulator particles in each cell as a weight information, the repartitioning based upon the principle that each processor handles approximately the equal total of simulator particles has been achieved. The computation must pause several times to renew the total of simulator particles in each processor and repartition the whole domain again. Thus the load balance across the processors array holds in the duration of computation. The parallel efficiency can be improved effectively. The benchmark solution of a cylinder submerged in hypersonic flow has been simulated numerically. Besides, hypersonic flow past around a complex wing-body configuration has also been simulated. The results have displayed that, for both of cases, the computational time can be reduced by about 50%.« less

Multi-objective group scheduling optimization integrated with preventive maintenance

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liao, Wenzhu; Zhang, Xiufang; Jiang, Min

2017-11-01

This article proposes a single-machine-based integration model to meet the requirements of production scheduling and preventive maintenance in group production. To describe the production for identical/similar and different jobs, this integrated model considers the learning and forgetting effects. Based on machine degradation, the deterioration effect is also considered. Moreover, perfect maintenance and minimal repair are adopted in this integrated model. The multi-objective of minimizing total completion time and maintenance cost is taken to meet the dual requirements of delivery date and cost. Finally, a genetic algorithm is developed to solve this optimization model, and the computation results demonstrate that this integrated model is effective and reliable.

The HEPCloud Facility: elastic computing for High Energy Physics – The NOvA Use Case

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

Fuess, S.; Garzoglio, G.; Holzman, B.

The need for computing in the HEP community follows cycles of peaks and valleys mainly driven by conference dates, accelerator shutdown, holiday schedules, and other factors. Because of this, the classical method of provisioning these resources at providing facilities has drawbacks such as potential overprovisioning. As the appetite for computing increases, however, so does the need to maximize cost efficiency by developing a model for dynamically provisioning resources only when needed. To address this issue, the HEPCloud project was launched by the Fermilab Scientific Computing Division in June 2015. Its goal is to develop a facility that provides a commonmore » interface to a variety of resources, including local clusters, grids, high performance computers, and community and commercial Clouds. Initially targeted experiments include CMS and NOvA, as well as other Fermilab stakeholders. In its first phase, the project has demonstrated the use of the “elastic” provisioning model offered by commercial clouds, such as Amazon Web Services. In this model, resources are rented and provisioned automatically over the Internet upon request. In January 2016, the project demonstrated the ability to increase the total amount of global CMS resources by 58,000 cores from 150,000 cores - a 25 percent increase - in preparation for the Recontres de Moriond. In March 2016, the NOvA experiment has also demonstrated resource burst capabilities with an additional 7,300 cores, achieving a scale almost four times as large as the local allocated resources and utilizing the local AWS s3 storage to optimize data handling operations and costs. NOvA was using the same familiar services used for local computations, such as data handling and job submission, in preparation for the Neutrino 2016 conference. In both cases, the cost was contained by the use of the Amazon Spot Instance Market and the Decision Engine, a HEPCloud component that aims at minimizing cost and job interruption. This paper describes the Fermilab HEPCloud Facility and the challenges overcome for the CMS and NOvA communities.« less

Incidence and lifetime costs of injuries in the United States

PubMed Central

Corso, P; Finkelstein, E; Miller, T; Fiebelkorn, I; Zaloshnja, E

2006-01-01

Background Standardized methodologies for assessing economic burden of injury at the national or international level do not exist. Objective To measure national incidence, medical costs, and productivity losses of medically treated injuries using the most recent data available in the United States, as a case study for similarly developed countries undertaking economic burden analyses. Method The authors combined several data sets to estimate the incidence of fatal and non‐fatal injuries in 2000. They computed unit medical and productivity costs and multiplied these costs by corresponding incidence estimates to yield total lifetime costs of injuries occurring in 2000. Main outcome measures Incidence, medical costs, productivity losses, and total costs for injuries stratified by age group, sex, and mechanism. Results More than 50 million Americans experienced a medically treated injury in 2000, resulting in lifetime costs of $406 billion; $80 billion for medical treatment and $326 billion for lost productivity. Males had a 20% higher rate of injury than females. Injuries resulting from falls or being struck by/against an object accounted for more than 44% of injuries. The rate of medically treated injuries declined by 15% from 1985 to 2000 in the US. For those aged 0–44, the incidence rate of injuries declined by more than 20%; while persons aged 75 and older experienced a 20% increase. Conclusions These national burden estimates provide unequivocal evidence of the large health and financial burden of injuries. This study can serve as a template for other countries or be used in intercountry comparisons. PMID:16887941

Computational Study of Scenarios Regarding Explosion Risk Mitigation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Vlasin, Nicolae-Ioan; Mihai Pasculescu, Vlad; Florea, Gheorghe-Daniel; Cornel Suvar, Marius

2016-10-01

Exploration in order to discover new deposits of natural gas, upgrading techniques to exploit these resources and new ways to convert the heat capacity of these gases into industrial usable energy is the research areas of great interest around the globe. But all activities involving the handling of natural gas (exploitation, transport, combustion) are subjected to the same type of risk: the risk to explosion. Experiments carried out physical scenarios to determine ways to reduce this risk can be extremely costly, requiring suitable premises, equipment and apparatus, manpower, time and, not least, presenting the risk of personnel injury. Taking in account the above mentioned, the present paper deals with the possibility of studying the scenarios of gas explosion type events in virtual domain, exemplifying by performing a computer simulation of a stoichiometric air - methane explosion (methane is the main component of natural gas). The advantages of computer-assisted imply are the possibility of using complex virtual geometries of any form as the area of deployment phenomenon, the use of the same geometry for an infinite number of settings of initial parameters as input, total elimination the risk of personnel injury, decrease the execution time etc. Although computer simulations are hardware resources consuming and require specialized personnel to use the CFD (Computational Fluid Dynamics) techniques, the costs and risks associated with these methods are greatly diminished, presenting, in the same time, a major benefit in terms of execution time.

Better than $l/Mflops sustained: a scalable PC-based parallel computer for lattice QCD

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fodor, Zoltán; Katz, Sándor D.; Papp, Gábor

2003-05-01

We study the feasibility of a PC-based parallel computer for medium to large scale lattice QCD simulations. The Eötvös Univ., Inst. Theor. Phys. cluster consists of 137 Intel P4-1.7GHz nodes with 512 MB RDRAM. The 32-bit, single precision sustained performance for dynamical QCD without communication is 1510 Mflops/node with Wilson and 970 Mflops/node with staggered fermions. This gives a total performance of 208 Gflops for Wilson and 133 Gflops for staggered QCD, respectively (for 64-bit applications the performance is approximately halved). The novel feature of our system is its communication architecture. In order to have a scalable, cost-effective machine we use Gigabit Ethernet cards for nearest-neighbor communications in a two-dimensional mesh. This type of communication is cost effective (only 30% of the hardware costs is spent on the communication). According to our benchmark measurements this type of communication results in around 40% communication time fraction for lattices upto 48 3·96 in full QCD simulations. The price/sustained-performance ratio for full QCD is better than l/Mflops for Wilson (and around 1.5/Mflops for staggered) quarks for practically any lattice size, which can fit in our parallel computer. The communication software is freely available upon request for non-profit organizations.

Randomized Approaches for Nearest Neighbor Search in Metric Space When Computing the Pairwise Distance Is Extremely Expensive

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Lusheng; Yang, Yong; Lin, Guohui

Finding the closest object for a query in a database is a classical problem in computer science. For some modern biological applications, computing the similarity between two objects might be very time consuming. For example, it takes a long time to compute the edit distance between two whole chromosomes and the alignment cost of two 3D protein structures. In this paper, we study the nearest neighbor search problem in metric space, where the pair-wise distance between two objects in the database is known and we want to minimize the number of distances computed on-line between the query and objects in the database in order to find the closest object. We have designed two randomized approaches for indexing metric space databases, where objects are purely described by their distances with each other. Analysis and experiments show that our approaches only need to compute O(logn) objects in order to find the closest object, where n is the total number of objects in the database.

The Additional Costs and Health Effects of a Patient Having Overweight or Obesity: A Computational Model.

PubMed

Fallah-Fini, Saeideh; Adam, Atif; Cheskin, Lawrence J; Bartsch, Sarah M; Lee, Bruce Y

2017-10-01

This paper estimates specific additional disease outcomes and costs that could be prevented by helping a patient go from an obesity or overweight category to a normal weight category at different ages. This information could help physicians, other health care workers, patients, and third-party payers determine how to prioritize weight reduction. A computational Markov model was developed that represented the BMI status, chronic health states, health outcomes, and associated costs (from various perspectives) for an adult at different age points throughout his or her lifetime. Incremental costs were calculated for adult patients with obesity or overweight (vs. normal weight) at different starting ages. For example, for a metabolically healthy 20-year-old, having obesity (vs. normal weight) added lifetime third-party payer costs averaging $14,059 (95% range: $13,956-$14,163), productivity losses of $14,141 ($13,969-$14,312), and total societal costs of $28,020 ($27,751-$28,289); having overweight vs. normal weight added $5,055 ($4,967-$5,144), $5,358 ($5,199-$5,518), and $10,365 ($10,140-$10,590). For a metabolically healthy 50-year-old, having obesity added $15,925 ($15,831-$16,020), $20,120 ($19,887-$20,352), and $36,278 ($35,977-$36,579); having overweight added $5,866 ($5,779-$5,953), $10,205 ($9,980-$10,429), and $16,169 ($15,899-$16,438). Incremental lifetime costs of a patient with obesity or overweight (vs. normal weight) increased with the patient's age, peaked at age 50, and decreased with older ages. However, weight reduction even in older adults still yielded incremental cost savings. © 2017 The Obesity Society.

Remediation System Design Optimization: Field Demonstration at the Umatilla Army Deport

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zheng, C.; Wang, P. P.

2002-05-01

Since the early 1980s, many researchers have shown that the simulation-optimization (S/O) approach is superior to the traditional trial-and-error method for designing cost-effective groundwater pump-and-treat systems. However, the application of the S/O approach to real field problems has remained limited. This paper describes the application of a new general simulation-optimization code to optimize an existing pump-and-treat system at the Umatilla Army Depot in Oregon, as part of a field demonstration project supported by the Environmental Security Technology Certification Program (ESTCP). Two optimization formulations were developed to minimize the total capital and operational costs under the current and possibly expanded treatment plant capacities. A third formulation was developed to minimize the total contaminant mass of RDX and TNT remaining in the shallow aquifer by the end of the project duration. For the first two formulations, this study produced an optimal pumping strategy that would achieve the cleanup goal in 4 years with a total cost of 1.66 million US dollars in net present value. For comparison, the existing design in operation was calculated to require 17 years for cleanup with a total cost of 3.83 million US dollars in net present value. Thus, the optimal pumping strategy represents a reduction of 13 years in cleanup time and a reduction of 56.6 percent in the expected total expenditure. For the third formulation, this study identified an optimal dynamic pumping strategy that would reduce the total mass remaining in the shallow aquifer by 89.5 percent compared with that calculated for the existing design. In spite of their intensive computational requirements, this study shows that the global optimization techniques including tabu search and genetic algorithms can be applied successfully to large-scale field problems involving multiple contaminants and complex hydrogeological conditions.

Telemedicine in Majuro Hospital, Marshall Islands.

PubMed

Gunawardane, K J

2000-09-01

Since March 1998 up to June 2000, telemedicine activities in Marshall Islands have mainly been for Referrals to Tripler Army Medical Center (TAMC) in Hawaii. The activities are based on a computer which has the Internet connection and accessories including a digital camera, flatbed scanner with a transparency adapter, color printer, a video printer, ophthalmoscope, otoscope and a video Lens, all of which were donated by Project Akamai in Hawaii. Two sessions of training were conducted by representatives from Akamai Project and from PBMA at the very beginning of the establishment of the unit, to all levels of Health Care Providers in Ministry of Health in Majuro. The computer and Internet facility is available 24 hours. Since March 1998 to June 2000, there had been 144 telemedicine consultations to TAMC. Out of a total of 326 off-island referrals for the same period, approximately 80 patients have been sent to TAMC using the PIHCP/Telemedicine program. This accounts for approximately 25% of total off-island referrals. This represents a significant reduction in cost. In addition to cost reduction the telemedicine unit most important impact is on the health providers, especially the physicians working at Majuro Hospital. Availability of medical information through internet has helped them to feel less isolated from the constantly changing field of medical science.

Cost Considerations in Nonlinear Finite-Element Computing

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Utku, S.; Melosh, R. J.; Islam, M.; Salama, M.

1985-01-01

Conference paper discusses computational requirements for finiteelement analysis using quasi-linear approach to nonlinear problems. Paper evaluates computational efficiency of different computer architecturtural types in terms of relative cost and computing time.

Quantum Monte Carlo with very large multideterminant wavefunctions.

PubMed

Scemama, Anthony; Applencourt, Thomas; Giner, Emmanuel; Caffarel, Michel

2016-07-01

An algorithm to compute efficiently the first two derivatives of (very) large multideterminant wavefunctions for quantum Monte Carlo calculations is presented. The calculation of determinants and their derivatives is performed using the Sherman-Morrison formula for updating the inverse Slater matrix. An improved implementation based on the reduction of the number of column substitutions and on a very efficient implementation of the calculation of the scalar products involved is presented. It is emphasized that multideterminant expansions contain in general a large number of identical spin-specific determinants: for typical configuration interaction-type wavefunctions the number of unique spin-specific determinants Ndetσ ( σ=↑,↓) with a non-negligible weight in the expansion is of order O(Ndet). We show that a careful implementation of the calculation of the Ndet -dependent contributions can make this step negligible enough so that in practice the algorithm scales as the total number of unique spin-specific determinants,  Ndet↑+Ndet↓, over a wide range of total number of determinants (here, Ndet up to about one million), thus greatly reducing the total computational cost. Finally, a new truncation scheme for the multideterminant expansion is proposed so that larger expansions can be considered without increasing the computational time. The algorithm is illustrated with all-electron fixed-node diffusion Monte Carlo calculations of the total energy of the chlorine atom. Calculations using a trial wavefunction including about 750,000 determinants with a computational increase of ∼400 compared to a single-determinant calculation are shown to be feasible. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Prediction of Temperatures of Austenite Equilibrium Transformations in Steels During Thermomechanical Processing

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Samadian, Pedram; Parsa, Mohammad Habibi; Ahmadabadi, M. Nili; Mirzadeh, Hamed

2014-10-01

Knowledge about the transformation temperatures is crucial in processing of steels especially in thermomechanical processes because microstructures and mechanical properties after processing are closely related to the extent and type of transformations. The experimental determination of critical temperatures is costly, and therefore, it is preferred to predict them by mathematical methods. In the current work, new thermodynamically based models were developed for computing the Ae3 and Acm temperatures in the equilibrium cooling conditions when austenite is deformed at elevated temperatures. The main advantage of the proposed models is their capability to predict the temperatures of austenite equilibrium transformations in steels with total alloying elements (Mn + Si + Ni + Cr + Mo + Cu) less than 5 wt.% and Si less than 1 wt.% under the deformation conditions just by using the chemical potential of constituents, without the need for determining the total Gibbs free energy of steel which requires many experiments and computations.

An ant colony optimization heuristic for an integrated production and distribution scheduling problem

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chang, Yung-Chia; Li, Vincent C.; Chiang, Chia-Ju

2014-04-01

Make-to-order or direct-order business models that require close interaction between production and distribution activities have been adopted by many enterprises in order to be competitive in demanding markets. This article considers an integrated production and distribution scheduling problem in which jobs are first processed by one of the unrelated parallel machines and then distributed to corresponding customers by capacitated vehicles without intermediate inventory. The objective is to find a joint production and distribution schedule so that the weighted sum of total weighted job delivery time and the total distribution cost is minimized. This article presents a mathematical model for describing the problem and designs an algorithm using ant colony optimization. Computational experiments illustrate that the algorithm developed is capable of generating near-optimal solutions. The computational results also demonstrate the value of integrating production and distribution in the model for the studied problem.

A Commodity Computing Cluster

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Teuben, P. J.; Wolfire, M. G.; Pound, M. W.; Mundy, L. G.

We have assembled a cluster of Intel-Pentium based PCs running Linux to compute a large set of Photodissociation Region (PDR) and Dust Continuum models. For various reasons the cluster is heterogeneous, currently ranging from a single Pentium-II 333 MHz to dual Pentium-III 450 MHz CPU machines. Although this will be sufficient for our ``embarrassingly parallelizable problem'' it may present some challenges for as yet unplanned future use. In addition the cluster was used to construct a MIRIAD benchmark, and compared to equivalent Ultra-Sparc based workstations. Currently the cluster consists of 8 machines, 14 CPUs, 50GB of disk-space, and a total peak speed of 5.83 GHz, or about 1.5 Gflops. The total cost of this cluster has been about $12,000, including all cabling, networking equipment, rack, and a CD-R backup system. The URL for this project is http://dustem.astro.umd.edu.

Assessing Tax Form Distribution Costs: A Proposed Method for Computing the Dollar Value of Tax Form Distribution in a Public Library.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Casey, James B.

1998-01-01

Explains how a public library can compute the actual cost of distributing tax forms to the public by listing all direct and indirect costs and demonstrating the formulae and necessary computations. Supplies directions for calculating costs involved for all levels of staff as well as associated public relations efforts, space, and utility costs.…

The salutary effect of an integrated system on the rate of repeat CT scanning in transferred trauma patients: Improved costs and efficiencies.

PubMed

Bledsoe, Joseph; Liepert, Amy E; Allen, Todd L; Dong, Li; Hemingway, Jamon; Majercik, Sarah; Gardner, Scott; Stevens, Mark H

2017-08-01

Duplication of Computed Tomography (CT) scanning in trauma patients has been a source of quality waste in healthcare and potential harm for patients. Integrated and regional health systems have been shown to promote opportunities for efficiencies, cost savings and increased safety. This study evaluated traumatically injured patients who required transfer to a Level One Trauma Center (TC) from either within a vertically integrated healthcare system (IN) or from an out-of-network (OON) hospital. We found the rate of repeat CT scanning, radiology costs and total costs for day one of hospitalization to be significantly lower for trauma patients transferred from an IN hospital as compared to those patients transferred from OON hospitals. The inefficiencies and waste often associated with transferred patients can be mitigated and strategies to do so are necessary to reduce costs in the current healthcare environment. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Software Solution Saves Dollars

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Trotter, Andrew

2004-01-01

This article discusses computer software that can give classrooms and computer labs the capabilities of costly PC's at a small fraction of the cost. A growing number of cost-conscious school districts are finding budget relief in low-cost computer software known as "open source" that can do everything from manage school Web sites to equip…

Can a costly intervention be cost-effective?: An analysis of violence prevention.

PubMed

Foster, E Michael; Jones, Damon

2006-11-01

To examine the cost-effectiveness of the Fast Track intervention, a multi-year, multi-component intervention designed to reduce violence among at-risk children. A previous report documented the favorable effect of intervention on the highest-risk group of ninth-graders diagnosed with conduct disorder, as well as self-reported delinquency. The current report addressed the cost-effectiveness of the intervention for these measures of program impact. Costs of the intervention were estimated using program budgets. Incremental cost-effectiveness ratios were computed to determine the cost per unit of improvement in the 3 outcomes measured in the 10th year of the study. Examination of the total sample showed that the intervention was not cost-effective at likely levels of policymakers' willingness to pay for the key outcomes. Subsequent analysis of those most at risk, however, showed that the intervention likely was cost-effective given specified willingness-to-pay criteria. Results indicate that the intervention is cost-effective for the children at highest risk. From a policy standpoint, this finding is encouraging because such children are likely to generate higher costs for society over their lifetimes. However, substantial barriers to cost-effectiveness remain, such as the ability to effectively identify and recruit such higher-risk children in future implementations.

Can a Costly Intervention Be Cost-effective?

PubMed Central

Foster, E. Michael; Jones, Damon

2009-01-01

Objectives To examine the cost-effectiveness of the Fast Track intervention, a multi-year, multi-component intervention designed to reduce violence among at-risk children. A previous report documented the favorable effect of intervention on the highest-risk group of ninth-graders diagnosed with conduct disorder, as well as self-reported delinquency. The current report addressed the cost-effectiveness of the intervention for these measures of program impact. Design Costs of the intervention were estimated using program budgets. Incremental cost-effectiveness ratios were computed to determine the cost per unit of improvement in the 3 outcomes measured in the 10th year of the study. Results Examination of the total sample showed that the intervention was not cost-effective at likely levels of policymakers' willingness to pay for the key outcomes. Subsequent analysis of those most at risk, however, showed that the intervention likely was cost-effective given specified willingness-to-pay criteria. Conclusions Results indicate that the intervention is cost-effective for the children at highest risk. From a policy standpoint, this finding is encouraging because such children are likely to generate higher costs for society over their lifetimes. However, substantial barriers to cost-effectiveness remain, such as the ability to effectively identify and recruit such higher-risk children in future implementations. PMID:17088509

The cost-effectiveness of an intensive treatment protocol for severe dyslexia in children.

PubMed

Hakkaart-van Roijen, Leona; Goettsch, Wim G; Ekkebus, Michel; Gerretsen, Patty; Stolk, Elly A

2011-08-01

Studies of interventions for dyslexia have focused entirely on outcomes related to literacy. In this study, we considered a broader picture assessing improved quality of life compared with costs. A model served as a tool to compare costs and effects of treatment according to a new protocol and care as usual. Quality of life was measured and valued by proxies using a general quality-of-life instrument (EQ-5D). We considered medical cost and non-medical cost (e.g. remedial teaching). The model computed cost per successful treatment and cost per quality adjusted life year (QALY) in time. About 75% of the total costs was related to diagnostic tests to distinguish between children with severe dyslexia and children who have reading difficulties for other reasons. The costs per successful treatment of severe dyslexia were €36 366. Successful treatment showed a quality-of-life gain of about 11%. At primary school, the average cost per QALY for severe dyslexia amounted to €58 647. In the long term, the cost per QALY decreased to €26 386 at secondary school and €17 663 thereafter. The results of this study provide evidence that treatment of severe dyslexia is cost-effective when the investigated protocol is followed. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

A cost-utility analysis of the use of preoperative computed tomographic angiography in abdomen-based perforator flap breast reconstruction.

PubMed

Offodile, Anaeze C; Chatterjee, Abhishek; Vallejo, Sergio; Fisher, Carla S; Tchou, Julia C; Guo, Lifei

2015-04-01

Computed tomographic angiography is a diagnostic tool increasingly used for preoperative vascular mapping in abdomen-based perforator flap breast reconstruction. This study compared the use of computed tomographic angiography and the conventional practice of Doppler ultrasonography only in postmastectomy reconstruction using a cost-utility model. Following a comprehensive literature review, a decision analytic model was created using the three most clinically relevant health outcomes in free autologous breast reconstruction with computed tomographic angiography versus Doppler ultrasonography only. Cost and utility estimates for each health outcome were used to derive the quality-adjusted life-years and incremental cost-utility ratio. One-way sensitivity analysis was performed to scrutinize the robustness of the authors' results. Six studies and 782 patients were identified. Cost-utility analysis revealed a baseline cost savings of $3179, a gain in quality-adjusted life-years of 0.25. This yielded an incremental cost-utility ratio of -$12,716, implying a dominant choice favoring preoperative computed tomographic angiography. Sensitivity analysis revealed that computed tomographic angiography was costlier when the operative time difference between the two techniques was less than 21.3 minutes. However, the clinical advantage of computed tomographic angiography over Doppler ultrasonography only showed that computed tomographic angiography would still remain the cost-effective option even if it offered no additional operating time advantage. The authors' results show that computed tomographic angiography is a cost-effective technology for identifying lower abdominal perforators for autologous breast reconstruction. Although the perfect study would be a randomized controlled trial of the two approaches with true cost accrual, the authors' results represent the best available evidence.

The cost-effectiveness of CT-guided sacroiliac joint injections: a measure of QALY gained.

PubMed

Bydon, Mohamad; Macki, Mohamed; De la Garza-Ramos, Rafael; Youssef, Mina; Gokaslan, Ziya L; Meleka, Sherif; Bydon, Ali

2014-10-01

The purpose of this study is to estimate the total cost and the quality of life years (QALY) gained for computer tomography (CT)-guided sacroiliac joint (SIJ) injections. The cost per QALY gained for the procedure is the primary end-point of this study. In our 1-year prospective institutional study, we gathered 30 patients undergoing CT-guided SIJ injections for degenerative changes at the SIJ space. Patient-reported outcomes included both the US population-based EQ-5D (EuroQol) index score and the EQ-visual analog scale (VAS). The EQ-5D is based on mobility, self-care, usual activities, pain/discomfort, and anxiety depression. Utility expenditures were based on hospital charges at our institution. All 30 patients had one pre-injection physician visit followed by 43 initial injections (13 bilateral). Each patient underwent one CT scan, and three patients required additional plain films. In the 1 year following the injections, 26 physician visits were documented. Five patients required repeat CT-guided injections. Total 1-year cost for all 30 patients was $34 874·00. Mean decrease in EQ-VAS was 0·60 (P  =  0·187). The mean 1-year gain of 0·58 EQ-5D QALY reached statistical significance (P < 0·001). The cost per QALY gained by CT-guided sacroiliac injections was $2004·29. In one of the first cost analyses of CT-guided sacroiliac injections, we found that the procedure improves pain and activities of daily living. The cost per QALY gained by CT-guided sacroiliac injections falls well below the threshold cost of 1 QALY, suggesting that the procedure is strongly cost-effective.

Predelivery uterine arteries embolization in patients with placental implant anomalies: a cost-effective procedure.

PubMed

Niola, Raffaella; Giurazza, Francesco; Torbica, Aleksandra; Schena, Emiliano; Silvestre, Mattia; Maglione, Franco

2017-01-01

Postpartum hemorrhages occur in 5 % of all deliveries. Open surgery and endovascular embolization techniques are the options commonly applied to face this life-threatening scenario. A cost analysis has been performed to compare the standard embolization endovascular approach, performed postpartum in emergency settlement, with a novel proposed preventive embolization approach, and performed in election in selected high-risk patients before the delivery. Two groups have been compared: 46 patients (non-preventive group) and 67 patients (preventive group). The computation of the detailed costs derived from the real costs supported by the hospital, based on the regional tariff in the period considered. The total expense for the 46 patients of the non-preventive group was 640.551,84€ (13.925,04€/patient); all of them received transfusions and 43.4 % underwent to hysterectomy; the total expense for the 67 patients of the preventive group was 509.720,59€ (7.607,77€/ patient); 36 % required transfusions and 26 % underwent to hysterectomy. Overall, in the preventive group, there is a mean saving of 45 %, it else 6.317€/patient. In this sample, predelivery uterine artery embolization has proved to be a cost-effective procedure, reducing the length of the hospital stay and the number of transfers to the intensive care unit, in pregnants with placental implant anomalies.

Computer-assisted Behavioral Therapy and Contingency Management for Cannabis Use Disorder

PubMed Central

Budney, Alan J.; Stanger, Catherine; Tilford, J. Mick; Scherer, Emily; Brown, Pamela C.; Li, Zhongze; Li, Zhigang; Walker, Denise

2015-01-01

Computer-assisted behavioral treatments hold promise for enhancing access to and reducing costs of treatments for substance use disorders. This study assessed the efficacy of a computer-assisted version of an efficacious, multicomponent treatment for cannabis use disorders (CUD), i.e., motivational enhancement therapy, cognitive-behavioral therapy, and abstinence-based contingency-management (MET/CBT/CM). An initial cost comparison was also performed. Seventy-five adult participants, 59% African Americans, seeking treatment for CUD received either, MET only (BRIEF), therapist-delivered MET/CBT/CM (THERAPIST), or computer-delivered MET/CBT/CM (COMPUTER). During treatment, the THERAPIST and COMPUTER conditions engendered longer durations of continuous cannabis abstinence than BRIEF (p < .05), but did not differ from each other. Abstinence rates and reduction in days of use over time were maintained in COMPUTER at least as well as in THERAPIST. COMPUTER averaged approximately $130 (p < .05) less per case than THERAPIST in therapist costs, which offset most of the costs of CM. Results add to promising findings that illustrate potential for computer-assisted delivery methods to enhance access to evidence-based care, reduce costs, and possibly improve outcomes. The observed maintenance effects and the cost findings require replication in larger clinical trials. PMID:25938629

Health economic assessment of Gd-EOB-DTPA MRI versus ECCM-MRI and multi-detector CT for diagnosis of hepatocellular carcinoma in China

PubMed Central

He, Xiaoning; Holtorf, Anke-Peggy; Rinde, Harald; Xie, Shuangshuang; Shen, Wen; Hou, Jiancun; Li, Xuehua; Li, Ziping; Lai, Jiaming; Wang, Yuting; Zhang, Lin; Wang, Jian; Li, Xuesong; Ma, Kuansheng; Ye, Feng; Ouyang, Han; Zhao, Hong

2018-01-01

Limited data exists in China on the comparative cost of gadolinium ethoxybenzyl diethylenetriamine magnetic resonance imaging (Gd-EOB-DTPA-MRI) with other imaging techniques. This study compared the total cost of Gd-EOB-DTPA-MRI with multidetector computed tomography (MDCT) and extracellular contrast media–enhanced MRI (ECCM-MRI) as initial imaging procedures in patients with suspected hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). We developed a decision-tree model on the basis of the Chinese clinical guidelines for HCC, which was validated by clinical experts from China. The model compared the diagnostic accuracy and costs of alternative initial imaging procedures. Compared with MDCT and ECCM-MRI, Gd-EOB-DTPA-MRI imaging was associated with higher rates of diagnostic accuracy, i.e. higher proportions of true positives (TP) and true negatives (TN) with lower false positives (FP). Total diagnosis and treatment cost per patient after the initial Gd-EOB-DTPA-MRI evaluation was similar to MDCT (¥30,360 vs. ¥30,803) and lower than that reported with ECCM-MRI (¥30,360 vs. ¥31,465). Lower treatment cost after initial Gd-EOB-DTPA-MRI was driven by reduced utilization of confirmatory diagnostic procedures and unnecessary treatments. The findings reported that Gd-EOB-DTPA-MRI offered higher diagnostic accuracy compared with MDCT and ECCM-MRI at a comparable cost, which indicates Gd-EOB-DTPA-MRI could be the preferred initial imaging procedure for the diagnosis of HCC in China. PMID:29324837

Spacelab experiment computer study. Volume 1: Executive summary (presentation)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lewis, J. L.; Hodges, B. C.; Christy, J. O.

1976-01-01

A quantitative cost for various Spacelab flight hardware configurations is provided along with varied software development options. A cost analysis of Spacelab computer hardware and software is presented. The cost study is discussed based on utilization of a central experiment computer with optional auxillary equipment. Groundrules and assumptions used in deriving the costing methods for all options in the Spacelab experiment study are presented. The groundrules and assumptions, are analysed and the options along with their cost considerations, are discussed. It is concluded that Spacelab program cost for software development and maintenance is independent of experimental hardware and software options, that distributed standard computer concept simplifies software integration without a significant increase in cost, and that decisions on flight computer hardware configurations should not be made until payload selection for a given mission and a detailed analysis of the mission requirements are completed.

New Mexico district work-effort analysis computer program

USGS Publications Warehouse

Hiss, W.L.; Trantolo, A.P.; Sparks, J.L.

1972-01-01

The computer program (CAN 2) described in this report is one of several related programs used in the New Mexico District cost-analysis system. The work-effort information used in these programs is accumulated and entered to the nearest hour on forms completed by each employee. Tabulating cards are punched directly from these forms after visual examinations for errors are made. Reports containing detailed work-effort data itemized by employee within each project and account and by account and project for each employee are prepared for both current-month and year-to-date periods by the CAN 2 computer program. An option allowing preparation of reports for a specified 3-month period is provided. The total number of hours worked on each account and project and a grand total of hours worked in the New Mexico District is computed and presented in a summary report for each period. Work effort not chargeable directly to individual projects or accounts is considered as overhead and can be apportioned to the individual accounts and projects on the basis of the ratio of the total hours of work effort for the individual accounts or projects to the total New Mexico District work effort at the option of the user. The hours of work performed by a particular section, such as General Investigations or Surface Water, are prorated and charged to the projects or accounts within the particular section. A number of surveillance or buffer accounts are employed to account for the hours worked on special events or on those parts of large projects or accounts that require a more detailed analysis. Any part of the New Mexico District operation can be separated and analyzed in detail by establishing an appropriate buffer account. With the exception of statements associated with word size, the computer program is written in FORTRAN IV in a relatively low and standard language level to facilitate its use on different digital computers. The program has been run only on a Control Data Corporation 6600 computer system. Central processing computer time has seldom exceeded 5 minutes on the longest year-to-date runs.

Raising taxes to reduce smoking prevalence in the US: a simulation of the anticipated health and economic impacts.

PubMed

Ahmad, Sajjad; Franz, Gregor A

2008-01-01

To estimate health and economic outcomes of raising the excise taxes on cigarettes. We use a dynamic computer simulation model to estimate health and economic impacts of raising taxes on cigarettes (up to 100% price increase) for the entire population of the USA over 20 years. We also perform sensitivity analysis on price elasticity. A 40% tax-induced cigarette price increase would reduce smoking prevalence from 21% in 2004 to 15.2% in 2025 with large gains in cumulative life years (7 million) and quality adjusted life years (13 million) over 20 years. Total tax revenue will increase by $365 billion in that span, and total smoking-related medical costs would drop by $317 billion, resulting in total savings of $682 billion. These benefits increase greatly with larger tax increases, and tax revenues continue to rise even as smoking prevalence falls. Increasing taxes on cigarettes is a unique policy intervention that reduces smoking prevalence, generates additional tax revenue, and results in significant savings in medical care costs.

Raising Taxes to Reduce Smoking Prevalence in the US: A Simulation of the Anticipated Health and Economic Impacts

PubMed Central

Ahmad, Sajjad; Franz, Gregor A.

2008-01-01

Objective To estimate health and economic outcomes of raising the excise taxes on cigarettes. Methods We use a dynamic computer simulation model to estimate health and economic impacts of raising taxes on cigarettes (up to 100% price increase) for the entire population of USA over 20 years. We also perform sensitivity analysis on price elasticity. Results A 40% tax-induced cigarette price increase would reduce smoking prevalence from 21% in 2004 to 15.2% in 2025 with large gains in cumulative life years (7 million) and quality adjusted life years (13 million) over 20 years. Total tax revenue will increase by $365 billion in that span, and total smoking-related medical costs would drop by $317 billion, resulting in total savings of $682 billion. These benefits increase greatly with larger tax increases, and tax revenues continue to rise even as smoking prevalence falls. Conclusions Increasing taxes on cigarettes is a unique policy intervention that reduces smoking prevalence, generates additional tax revenue, and results in significant savings in medical care costs. PMID:17610918

Inexpensive programmable clock for a 12-bit computer

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Vrancik, J. E.

1972-01-01

An inexpensive programmable clock was built for a digital PDP-12 computer. The instruction list includes skip on flag; clear the flag, clear the clock, and stop the clock; and preset the counter with the contents of the accumulator and start the clock. The clock counts at a rate determined by an external oscillator and causes an interrupt and sets a flag when a 12-bit overflow occurs. An overflow can occur after 1 to 4096 counts. The clock can be built for a total parts cost of less than $100 including power supply and I/O connector. Slight modification can be made to permit its use on larger machines (16 bit, 24 bit, etc.) and logic level shifting can be made to make it compatible with any computer.

Sensitivity analysis of limit state functions for probability-based plastic design

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Frangopol, D. M.

1984-01-01

The evaluation of the total probability of a plastic collapse failure P sub f for a highly redundant structure of random interdependent plastic moments acted on by random interdepedent loads is a difficult and computationally very costly process. The evaluation of reasonable bounds to this probability requires the use of second moment algebra which involves man statistical parameters. A computer program which selects the best strategy for minimizing the interval between upper and lower bounds of P sub f is now in its final stage of development. The relative importance of various uncertainties involved in the computational process on the resulting bounds of P sub f, sensitivity is analyzed. Response sensitivities for both mode and system reliability of an ideal plastic portal frame are shown.

Autonomic Computing: Panacea or Poppycock?

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Sterritt, Roy; Hinchey, Mike

2005-01-01

Autonomic Computing arose out of a need for a means to cope with rapidly growing complexity of integrating, managing, and operating computer-based systems as well as a need to reduce the total cost of ownership of today's systems. Autonomic Computing (AC) as a discipline was proposed by IBM in 2001, with the vision to develop self-managing systems. As the name implies, the influence for the new paradigm is the human body's autonomic system, which regulates vital bodily functions such as the control of heart rate, the body's temperature and blood flow-all without conscious effort. The vision is to create selfivare through self-* properties. The initial set of properties, in terms of objectives, were self-configuring, self-healing, self-optimizing and self-protecting, along with attributes of self-awareness, self-monitoring and self-adjusting. This self-* list has grown: self-anticipating, self-critical, self-defining, self-destructing, self-diagnosis, self-governing, self-organized, self-reflecting, and self-simulation, for instance.

Mobile clusters of single board computers: an option for providing resources to student projects and researchers.

PubMed

Baun, Christian

2016-01-01

Clusters usually consist of servers, workstations or personal computers as nodes. But especially for academic purposes like student projects or scientific projects, the cost for purchase and operation can be a challenge. Single board computers cannot compete with the performance or energy-efficiency of higher-value systems, but they are an option to build inexpensive cluster systems. Because of the compact design and modest energy consumption, it is possible to build clusters of single board computers in a way that they are mobile and can be easily transported by the users. This paper describes the construction of such a cluster, useful applications and the performance of the single nodes. Furthermore, the clusters' performance and energy-efficiency is analyzed by executing the High Performance Linpack benchmark with a different number of nodes and different proportion of the systems total main memory utilized.

A GPU accelerated and error-controlled solver for the unbounded Poisson equation in three dimensions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Exl, Lukas

2017-12-01

An efficient solver for the three dimensional free-space Poisson equation is presented. The underlying numerical method is based on finite Fourier series approximation. While the error of all involved approximations can be fully controlled, the overall computation error is driven by the convergence of the finite Fourier series of the density. For smooth and fast-decaying densities the proposed method will be spectrally accurate. The method scales with O(N log N) operations, where N is the total number of discretization points in the Cartesian grid. The majority of the computational costs come from fast Fourier transforms (FFT), which makes it ideal for GPU computation. Several numerical computations on CPU and GPU validate the method and show efficiency and convergence behavior. Tests are performed using the Vienna Scientific Cluster 3 (VSC3). A free MATLAB implementation for CPU and GPU is provided to the interested community.

Communication: Calculation of interatomic forces and optimization of molecular geometry with auxiliary-field quantum Monte Carlo

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Motta, Mario; Zhang, Shiwei

2018-05-01

We propose an algorithm for accurate, systematic, and scalable computation of interatomic forces within the auxiliary-field quantum Monte Carlo (AFQMC) method. The algorithm relies on the Hellmann-Feynman theorem and incorporates Pulay corrections in the presence of atomic orbital basis sets. We benchmark the method for small molecules by comparing the computed forces with the derivatives of the AFQMC potential energy surface and by direct comparison with other quantum chemistry methods. We then perform geometry optimizations using the steepest descent algorithm in larger molecules. With realistic basis sets, we obtain equilibrium geometries in agreement, within statistical error bars, with experimental values. The increase in computational cost for computing forces in this approach is only a small prefactor over that of calculating the total energy. This paves the way for a general and efficient approach for geometry optimization and molecular dynamics within AFQMC.

A Survey Of Earth-Moon Libration Orbits: Stationkeeping Strategies And Intra-Orbit Transfers

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Folta, David; Vaughn, Frank

2004-01-01

Cislunar space is a readily accessible region that may well develop into a prime staging area in the effort to colonize space near Earth or to colonize the Moon. While there have been statements made by various NASA programs regarding placement of resources in orbit about the Earth-Moon Lagrangian locations, there is no survey of the total cost associated with attaining and maintaining these unique orbits in an operational fashion. Transfer trajectories between these orbits required for assembly, servicing, and positioning of these resources have not been extensively investigated. These orbits are dynamically similar to those used for the Sun-Earth missions, but differences in governing gravitational ratios and perturbation sources result in unique characteristics. We implement numerical computations using high fidelity models and linear and nonlinear targeting techniques to compute the various maneuver (Delta)V and temporal costs associated with orbits about each of the Earth-Moon Lagrangian locations (L1, L2, L3, L4, and L5). From a dynamical system standpoint, we speak to the nature of these orbits and their stability. We address the cost of transfers between each pair of Lagrangian locations.

Energy cost of wheel running in house mice: implications for coadaptation of locomotion and energy budgets.

PubMed

Koteja, P; Swallow, J G; Carter, P A; Garland, T

1999-01-01

Laboratory house mice (Mus domesticus) that had experienced 10 generations of artificial selection for high levels of voluntary wheel running ran about 70% more total revolutions per day than did mice from random-bred control lines. The difference resulted primarily from increased average velocities rather than from increased time spent running. Within all eight lines (four selected, four control), females ran more than males. Average daily running distances ranged from 4.4 km in control males to 11.6 km in selected females. Whole-animal food consumption was statistically indistinguishable in the selected and control lines. However, mice from selected lines averaged approximately 10% smaller in body mass, and mass-adjusted food consumption was 4% higher in selected lines than in controls. The incremental cost of locomotion (grams food/revolution), computed as the partial regression slope of food consumption on revolutions run per day, did not differ between selected and control mice. On a 24-h basis, the total incremental cost of running (covering a distance) amounted to only 4.4% of food consumption in the control lines and 7.5% in the selected ones. However, the daily incremental cost of time active is higher (15.4% and 13.1% of total food consumption in selected and control lines, respectively). If wheel running in the selected lines continues to increase mainly by increases in velocity, then constraints related to energy acquisition are unlikely to be an important factor limiting further selective gain. More generally, our results suggest that, in small mammals, a substantial evolutionary increase in daily movement distances can be achieved by increasing running speed, without remarkable increases in total energy expenditure.

24 CFR 908.108 - Cost.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... computer hardware or software, or both, the cost of contracting for those services, or the cost of... operating budget. At the HA's option, the cost of the computer software may include service contracts to...

Cost-effective cloud computing: a case study using the comparative genomics tool, roundup.

PubMed

Kudtarkar, Parul; Deluca, Todd F; Fusaro, Vincent A; Tonellato, Peter J; Wall, Dennis P

2010-12-22

Comparative genomics resources, such as ortholog detection tools and repositories are rapidly increasing in scale and complexity. Cloud computing is an emerging technological paradigm that enables researchers to dynamically build a dedicated virtual cluster and may represent a valuable alternative for large computational tools in bioinformatics. In the present manuscript, we optimize the computation of a large-scale comparative genomics resource-Roundup-using cloud computing, describe the proper operating principles required to achieve computational efficiency on the cloud, and detail important procedures for improving cost-effectiveness to ensure maximal computation at minimal costs. Utilizing the comparative genomics tool, Roundup, as a case study, we computed orthologs among 902 fully sequenced genomes on Amazon's Elastic Compute Cloud. For managing the ortholog processes, we designed a strategy to deploy the web service, Elastic MapReduce, and maximize the use of the cloud while simultaneously minimizing costs. Specifically, we created a model to estimate cloud runtime based on the size and complexity of the genomes being compared that determines in advance the optimal order of the jobs to be submitted. We computed orthologous relationships for 245,323 genome-to-genome comparisons on Amazon's computing cloud, a computation that required just over 200 hours and cost $8,000 USD, at least 40% less than expected under a strategy in which genome comparisons were submitted to the cloud randomly with respect to runtime. Our cost savings projections were based on a model that not only demonstrates the optimal strategy for deploying RSD to the cloud, but also finds the optimal cluster size to minimize waste and maximize usage. Our cost-reduction model is readily adaptable for other comparative genomics tools and potentially of significant benefit to labs seeking to take advantage of the cloud as an alternative to local computing infrastructure.

Effects on costs of frontline diagnostic evaluation in patients suspected of angina: coronary computed tomography angiography vs. conventional ischaemia testing.

PubMed

Nielsen, Lene H; Olsen, Jens; Markenvard, John; Jensen, Jesper M; Nørgaard, Bjarne L

2013-05-01

The aim of this study was to investigate in patients with stable angina the effects on costs of frontline diagnostics by exercise-stress testing (ex-test) vs. coronary computed tomography angiography (CTA). In two coronary units at Lillebaelt Hospital, Denmark, 498 patients were identified in whom either ex-test (n = 247) or CTA (n = 251) were applied as the frontline diagnostic strategy in symptomatic patients with a low-intermediate pre-test probability of coronary artery disease (CAD). During 12 months of follow-up, death, myocardial infarction and costs associated with downstream diagnostic utilization (DTU), treatment, ambulatory visits, and hospitalizations were registered. There was no difference between cohorts in demographic characteristics or the pre-test probability of significant CAD. The mean (SD) age was 56 (11) years; 52% were men; and 96% were at low-intermediate pre-test probability of CAD. All serious cardiac events (n = 3) during follow-up occurred in patients with a negative ex-test result. Mean costs per patient associated with DTU, ambulatory visits, and cardiovascular medication were significantly higher in the ex-test than in the CTA group. The mean (SD) total costs per patient at the end of the follow-up were 14% lower in the CTA group than in the ex-test group, € 1510 (3474) vs. €1777 (3746) (P = 0.03). Diagnostic assessment of symptomatic patients with a low-intermediate probability of CAD by CTA incurred lower costs when compared with the ex-test. These findings need confirmation in future prospective trials.

A PC program to optimize system configuration for desired reliability at minimum cost

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hills, Steven W.; Siahpush, Ali S.

1994-01-01

High reliability is desired in all engineered systems. One way to improve system reliability is to use redundant components. When redundant components are used, the problem becomes one of allocating them to achieve the best reliability without exceeding other design constraints such as cost, weight, or volume. Systems with few components can be optimized by simply examining every possible combination but the number of combinations for most systems is prohibitive. A computerized iteration of the process is possible but anything short of a super computer requires too much time to be practical. Many researchers have derived mathematical formulations for calculating the optimum configuration directly. However, most of the derivations are based on continuous functions whereas the real system is composed of discrete entities. Therefore, these techniques are approximations of the true optimum solution. This paper describes a computer program that will determine the optimum configuration of a system of multiple redundancy of both standard and optional components. The algorithm is a pair-wise comparative progression technique which can derive the true optimum by calculating only a small fraction of the total number of combinations. A designer can quickly analyze a system with this program on a personal computer.

Custom hip prostheses by integrating CAD and casting technology

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Silva, Pedro F.; Leal, Nuno; Neto, Rui J.; Lino, F. Jorge; Reis, Ana

2012-09-01

Total Hip Arthroplasty (THA) is a surgical intervention that is being achieving high rates of success, leaving room to research on long run durability, patient comfort and costs reduction. Even so, up to the present, little research has been done to improve the method of manufacturing customized prosthesis. The common customized prostheses are made by full machining. This document presents a different approach methodology which combines the study of medical images, through CAD (Computer Aided Design) software, SLadditive manufacturing, ceramic shell manufacture, precision foundry with Titanium alloys and Computer Aided Manufacturing (CAM). The goal is to achieve the best comfort for the patient, stress distribution and the maximum lifetime of the prosthesis produced by this integrated methodology. The way to achieve this desiderate is to make custom hip prosthesis which are adapted to each patient needs and natural physiognomy. Not only the process is reliable, but also represents a cost reduction comparing to the conventional full machined custom hip prosthesis.

Brian hears: online auditory processing using vectorization over channels.

PubMed

Fontaine, Bertrand; Goodman, Dan F M; Benichoux, Victor; Brette, Romain

2011-01-01

The human cochlea includes about 3000 inner hair cells which filter sounds at frequencies between 20 Hz and 20 kHz. This massively parallel frequency analysis is reflected in models of auditory processing, which are often based on banks of filters. However, existing implementations do not exploit this parallelism. Here we propose algorithms to simulate these models by vectorizing computation over frequency channels, which are implemented in "Brian Hears," a library for the spiking neural network simulator package "Brian." This approach allows us to use high-level programming languages such as Python, because with vectorized operations, the computational cost of interpretation represents a small fraction of the total cost. This makes it possible to define and simulate complex models in a simple way, while all previous implementations were model-specific. In addition, we show that these algorithms can be naturally parallelized using graphics processing units, yielding substantial speed improvements. We demonstrate these algorithms with several state-of-the-art cochlear models, and show that they compare favorably with existing, less flexible, implementations.

An evaluation of superminicomputers for thermal analysis

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Storaasli, O. O.; Vidal, J. B.; Jones, G. K.

1962-01-01

The feasibility and cost effectiveness of solving thermal analysis problems on superminicomputers is demonstrated. Conventional thermal analysis and the changing computer environment, computer hardware and software used, six thermal analysis test problems, performance of superminicomputers (CPU time, accuracy, turnaround, and cost) and comparison with large computers are considered. Although the CPU times for superminicomputers were 15 to 30 times greater than the fastest mainframe computer, the minimum cost to obtain the solutions on superminicomputers was from 11 percent to 59 percent of the cost of mainframe solutions. The turnaround (elapsed) time is highly dependent on the computer load, but for large problems, superminicomputers produced results in less elapsed time than a typically loaded mainframe computer.

National use of thrombolysis with alteplase for acute ischaemic stroke via telemedicine in Denmark: a model of budgetary impact and cost effectiveness.

PubMed

Ehlers, Lars; Müskens, Wilhelmina Maria; Jensen, Lotte Groth; Kjølby, Mette; Andersen, Grethe

2008-01-01

The purpose of this analysis was to assess the budgetary impact and cost effectiveness of the national use of thrombolysis with alteplase (recombinant tissue plasminogen activator; rt-PA) for acute ischaemic stroke via telemedicine in Denmark. Computations were based on a Danish health economic model of thrombolysis treatment of acute ischaemic stroke via telemedicine. Cost data for stroke units and satellite clinics were taken from the first practical experiences in Denmark with implementing thrombolysis via telemedical linkage to the Stroke Department at Aarhus University Hospital. Effectiveness data were taken from a published pooled analysis of results from randomized controlled trials of alteplase. The calculations showed that the additional total costs to the hospitals of implementing thrombolysis with alteplase for acute ischaemic stroke via telemedicine were approximately $US3.0 (range 2.0-5.8) million per year in the case of five centres and five satellite clinics, or $US3.6 (range 2.4-7.0) million per year based on seven centres and seven satellite clinics. The incremental cost-effectiveness ratio was calculated to be approximately $US50,000 when taking a short time perspective (1 year), but thrombolysis was dominant (both cheaper and more effective) after as little as 2 years and cost effectiveness improved over longer time scales. The budgetary impact of using thrombolysis with alteplase for acute ischaemic stroke via telemedicine depends on the existing capacity and organizational conditions at the local hospitals. The health economic model computations suggest that the macroeconomic costs may balance with savings in care and rehabilitation after as little as 2 years, and that potentially large long-term savings are associated with thrombolysis with alteplase delivered by telemedicine, although the long-term calculations are uncertain.

Upon Accounting for the Impact of Isoenzyme Loss, Gene Deletion Costs Anticorrelate with Their Evolutionary Rates.

PubMed

Jacobs, Christopher; Lambourne, Luke; Xia, Yu; Segrè, Daniel

2017-01-01

System-level metabolic network models enable the computation of growth and metabolic phenotypes from an organism's genome. In particular, flux balance approaches have been used to estimate the contribution of individual metabolic genes to organismal fitness, offering the opportunity to test whether such contributions carry information about the evolutionary pressure on the corresponding genes. Previous failure to identify the expected negative correlation between such computed gene-loss cost and sequence-derived evolutionary rates in Saccharomyces cerevisiae has been ascribed to a real biological gap between a gene's fitness contribution to an organism "here and now" and the same gene's historical importance as evidenced by its accumulated mutations over millions of years of evolution. Here we show that this negative correlation does exist, and can be exposed by revisiting a broadly employed assumption of flux balance models. In particular, we introduce a new metric that we call "function-loss cost", which estimates the cost of a gene loss event as the total potential functional impairment caused by that loss. This new metric displays significant negative correlation with evolutionary rate, across several thousand minimal environments. We demonstrate that the improvement gained using function-loss cost over gene-loss cost is explained by replacing the base assumption that isoenzymes provide unlimited capacity for backup with the assumption that isoenzymes are completely non-redundant. We further show that this change of the assumption regarding isoenzymes increases the recall of epistatic interactions predicted by the flux balance model at the cost of a reduction in the precision of the predictions. In addition to suggesting that the gene-to-reaction mapping in genome-scale flux balance models should be used with caution, our analysis provides new evidence that evolutionary gene importance captures much more than strict essentiality.

Automating NEURON Simulation Deployment in Cloud Resources.

PubMed

Stockton, David B; Santamaria, Fidel

2017-01-01

Simulations in neuroscience are performed on local servers or High Performance Computing (HPC) facilities. Recently, cloud computing has emerged as a potential computational platform for neuroscience simulation. In this paper we compare and contrast HPC and cloud resources for scientific computation, then report how we deployed NEURON, a widely used simulator of neuronal activity, in three clouds: Chameleon Cloud, a hybrid private academic cloud for cloud technology research based on the OpenStack software; Rackspace, a public commercial cloud, also based on OpenStack; and Amazon Elastic Cloud Computing, based on Amazon's proprietary software. We describe the manual procedures and how to automate cloud operations. We describe extending our simulation automation software called NeuroManager (Stockton and Santamaria, Frontiers in Neuroinformatics, 2015), so that the user is capable of recruiting private cloud, public cloud, HPC, and local servers simultaneously with a simple common interface. We conclude by performing several studies in which we examine speedup, efficiency, total session time, and cost for sets of simulations of a published NEURON model.

Automating NEURON Simulation Deployment in Cloud Resources

PubMed Central

Santamaria, Fidel

2016-01-01

Simulations in neuroscience are performed on local servers or High Performance Computing (HPC) facilities. Recently, cloud computing has emerged as a potential computational platform for neuroscience simulation. In this paper we compare and contrast HPC and cloud resources for scientific computation, then report how we deployed NEURON, a widely used simulator of neuronal activity, in three clouds: Chameleon Cloud, a hybrid private academic cloud for cloud technology research based on the Open-Stack software; Rackspace, a public commercial cloud, also based on OpenStack; and Amazon Elastic Cloud Computing, based on Amazon’s proprietary software. We describe the manual procedures and how to automate cloud operations. We describe extending our simulation automation software called NeuroManager (Stockton and Santamaria, Frontiers in Neuroinformatics, 2015), so that the user is capable of recruiting private cloud, public cloud, HPC, and local servers simultaneously with a simple common interface. We conclude by performing several studies in which we examine speedup, efficiency, total session time, and cost for sets of simulations of a published NEURON model. PMID:27655341

Optimization Scheduling Model for Wind-thermal Power System Considering the Dynamic penalty factor

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

PENG, Siyu; LUO, Jianchun; WANG, Yunyu; YANG, Jun; RAN, Hong; PENG, Xiaodong; HUANG, Ming; LIU, Wanyu

2018-03-01

In this paper, a new dynamic economic dispatch model for power system is presented.Objective function of the proposed model presents a major novelty in the dynamic economic dispatch including wind farm: introduced the “Dynamic penalty factor”, This factor could be computed by using fuzzy logic considering both the variable nature of active wind power and power demand, and it could change the wind curtailment cost according to the different state of the power system. Case studies were carried out on the IEEE30 system. Results show that the proposed optimization model could mitigate the wind curtailment and the total cost effectively, demonstrate the validity and effectiveness of the proposed model.

Development of an Automated Micro-Computer Knowledge-Based Integrated Configuration Management System for the Stock Point Logistics Integrated Communications Environment (SPLICE) Project Management Staff.

DTIC Science & Technology

1986-03-01

Installation Cost Real Basic Monthly Maintenance Cost Real -" . I 2 ! UU LU uj ~~ LA . ~z LU J LLU 151 APPENDIX B: MAINTENANCE MANUAL Page 15 -LJ uLA- u’Il -LJ...bl 59748.0 9 09 NARDAC JACKSONVILLE, FL, 2 2 VIII A S 188471.0 10 10 NARDAC NEW ORLEANS, LA 2 2 P A S 73918.0 11 11 NARDAC NORFOLK, VA 2 2 VIII A S...1366 Beqin 1367 FOR Row =0 to 5 LWJ 1368 FOR Col 1 to 3 DO 1369 Beqin 1370 Subtotals [Row, Coll := 0; 1371 IF Col ( 3 TIEN Totals

Body frame close coupling wave packet approach to gas phase atom-rigid rotor inelastic collisions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Sun, Y.; Judson, R. S.; Kouri, D. J.

1989-01-01

The close coupling wave packet (CCWP) method is formulated in a body-fixed representation for atom-rigid rotor inelastic scattering. For J greater than j-max (where J is the total angular momentum and j is the rotational quantum number), the computational cost of propagating the coupled channel wave packets in the body frame is shown to scale approximately as N exp 3/2, where N is the total number of channels. For large numbers of channels, this will be much more efficient than the space frame CCWP method previously developed which scales approximately as N-squared under the same conditions.

Accelerating cross-validation with total variation and its application to super-resolution imaging

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Obuchi, Tomoyuki; Ikeda, Shiro; Akiyama, Kazunori; Kabashima, Yoshiyuki

2017-12-01

We develop an approximation formula for the cross-validation error (CVE) of a sparse linear regression penalized by ℓ_1-norm and total variation terms, which is based on a perturbative expansion utilizing the largeness of both the data dimensionality and the model. The developed formula allows us to reduce the necessary computational cost of the CVE evaluation significantly. The practicality of the formula is tested through application to simulated black-hole image reconstruction on the event-horizon scale with super resolution. The results demonstrate that our approximation reproduces the CVE values obtained via literally conducted cross-validation with reasonably good precision.

Manual of phosphoric acid fuel cell power plant cost model and computer program

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lu, C. Y.; Alkasab, K. A.

1984-01-01

Cost analysis of phosphoric acid fuel cell power plant includes two parts: a method for estimation of system capital costs, and an economic analysis which determines the levelized annual cost of operating the system used in the capital cost estimation. A FORTRAN computer has been developed for this cost analysis.

Cost-effectiveness of postural exercise therapy versus physiotherapy in computer screen-workers with early non-specific work-related upper limb disorders (WRULD); a randomized controlled trial.

PubMed

van Eijsden, Marjon D; Gerhards, Sylvia A; de Bie, Rob A; Severens, Johan L

2009-11-17

Exercise therapies generate substantial costs in computer workers with non-specific work-related upper limb disorders (WRULD). To study if postural exercise therapy is cost-effective compared to regular physiotherapy in screen-workers with early complaints, both from health care and societal perspective. Prospective randomized trial including cost-effectiveness analysis; one year follow-up. Eighty-eight screen-workers with early non-specific WRULD; six drop-outs. A ten week postural exercise program versus regular physiotherapy. Effectiveness measures: Pain: visual analogous scale (VAS), self-perceived WRULD (yes/no). Functional outcome: Disabilities of Arm, Shoulder and Hand- Dutch Language Version (DASH-DLV). Quality of life outcome: EQ-5D.Economic measures: health care costs including patient and family costs and productivity costs resulting in societal costs. Cost-effectiveness measures: health care costs and societal costs related to the effectiveness measures. OUTCOME MEASURES were assessed at baseline; three, six and twelve months after baseline. At baseline both groups were comparable for baseline characteristics except scores on the Pain Catastrophizing Scale and comparable for costs. No significant differences between the groups concerning effectiveness at one year follow-up were found. Effectiveness scores slightly improved over time. After one year 55% of participants were free of complaints. After one year the postural exercise group had higher mean total health care costs, but lower productivity costs compared to the physiotherapy group. Mean societal costs after one year (therefore) were in favor of postural exercise therapy [- euro622; 95% CI -2087; +590)]. After one year, only self- perceived WRULD seemed to result in acceptable cost-effectiveness of the postural exercise strategy over physiotherapy; however the probability of acceptable cost-effectiveness did not exceed 60%.Considering societal costs related to QALYs, postural exercise therapy had a probability of over 80% to be cost-effective over a wide range of cost-effectiveness ceiling ratios; however based on a marginal QALY-difference of 0.1 over a 12 month time frame. Although our trial failed to find significant differences in VAS, QALYs and ICERs based on VAS and QALYs at one-year follow-up, CEACs suggest that postural exercise therapy according to Mensendieck/Cesar has a higher probability of being cost-effective compared to regular physiotherapy; however further research is required. ISRCTN 15872455.

Self-consistent field for fragmented quantum mechanical model of large molecular systems.

PubMed

Jin, Yingdi; Su, Neil Qiang; Xu, Xin; Hu, Hao

2016-01-30

Fragment-based linear scaling quantum chemistry methods are a promising tool for the accurate simulation of chemical and biomolecular systems. Because of the coupled inter-fragment electrostatic interactions, a dual-layer iterative scheme is often employed to compute the fragment electronic structure and the total energy. In the dual-layer scheme, the self-consistent field (SCF) of the electronic structure of a fragment must be solved first, then followed by the updating of the inter-fragment electrostatic interactions. The two steps are sequentially carried out and repeated; as such a significant total number of fragment SCF iterations is required to converge the total energy and becomes the computational bottleneck in many fragment quantum chemistry methods. To reduce the number of fragment SCF iterations and speed up the convergence of the total energy, we develop here a new SCF scheme in which the inter-fragment interactions can be updated concurrently without converging the fragment electronic structure. By constructing the global, block-wise Fock matrix and density matrix, we prove that the commutation between the two global matrices guarantees the commutation of the corresponding matrices in each fragment. Therefore, many highly efficient numerical techniques such as the direct inversion of the iterative subspace method can be employed to converge simultaneously the electronic structure of all fragments, reducing significantly the computational cost. Numerical examples for water clusters of different sizes suggest that the method shall be very useful in improving the scalability of fragment quantum chemistry methods. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Do Clouds Compute? A Framework for Estimating the Value of Cloud Computing

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Klems, Markus; Nimis, Jens; Tai, Stefan

On-demand provisioning of scalable and reliable compute services, along with a cost model that charges consumers based on actual service usage, has been an objective in distributed computing research and industry for a while. Cloud Computing promises to deliver on this objective: consumers are able to rent infrastructure in the Cloud as needed, deploy applications and store data, and access them via Web protocols on a pay-per-use basis. The acceptance of Cloud Computing, however, depends on the ability for Cloud Computing providers and consumers to implement a model for business value co-creation. Therefore, a systematic approach to measure costs and benefits of Cloud Computing is needed. In this paper, we discuss the need for valuation of Cloud Computing, identify key components, and structure these components in a framework. The framework assists decision makers in estimating Cloud Computing costs and to compare these costs to conventional IT solutions. We demonstrate by means of representative use cases how our framework can be applied to real world scenarios.

A hybrid meta-heuristic algorithm for the vehicle routing problem with stochastic travel times considering the driver's satisfaction

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tavakkoli-Moghaddam, Reza; Alinaghian, Mehdi; Salamat-Bakhsh, Alireza; Norouzi, Narges

2012-05-01

A vehicle routing problem is a significant problem that has attracted great attention from researchers in recent years. The main objectives of the vehicle routing problem are to minimize the traveled distance, total traveling time, number of vehicles and cost function of transportation. Reducing these variables leads to decreasing the total cost and increasing the driver's satisfaction level. On the other hand, this satisfaction, which will decrease by increasing the service time, is considered as an important logistic problem for a company. The stochastic time dominated by a probability variable leads to variation of the service time, while it is ignored in classical routing problems. This paper investigates the problem of the increasing service time by using the stochastic time for each tour such that the total traveling time of the vehicles is limited to a specific limit based on a defined probability. Since exact solutions of the vehicle routing problem that belong to the category of NP-hard problems are not practical in a large scale, a hybrid algorithm based on simulated annealing with genetic operators was proposed to obtain an efficient solution with reasonable computational cost and time. Finally, for some small cases, the related results of the proposed algorithm were compared with results obtained by the Lingo 8 software. The obtained results indicate the efficiency of the proposed hybrid simulated annealing algorithm.

Compressor Performance Scaling in the Presence of Non-Uniform Flow

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hill, David Jarrod

Fuselage-embedded engines in future aircraft will see increased flow distortions due to the ingestion of airframe boundary layers. This reduces the required propulsive power compared to podded engines. Inlet flow distortions mean that localized regions of flow within the fan and first stage compressor are operating at off-design conditions. It is important to weigh the benefit of increased vehicle propulsive efficiency against the resultant reduction in engine efficiency. High computational cost has limited most past research to single distortion studies. The objective of this thesis is to extract scaling laws for transonic compressor performance in the presence of various distortion patterns and intensities. The machine studied is the NASA R67 transonic compressor. Volumetric source terms are used to model rotor and stator blade rows. The modelling approach is an innovative combination of existing flow turning and loss models, combined with a compressible flow correction. This approach allows for a steady calculation to capture distortion transfer; as a result, the computational cost is reduced by two orders of magnitude. At peak efficiency, the rotor work coefficient and isentropic efficiency are matched within 1.4% of previously published experimental results. A key finding of this thesis is that, in non-uniform flow, the state-of-the-art loss model employed is unable to capture the impact of variations in local flow coefficient, limiting the analysis of local entropy generation. New insight explains the mechanism governing the interaction between a total temperature distortion and a compressor rotor. A parametric study comprising 16 inlet distortions reveals that for total temperature distortions, upstream flow redistribution and rotor diffusion factor changes are shown to scale linearly with distortion severity. Linear diffusion factor scaling does not hold true for total pressure distortions. For combined total temperature and total pressure distortions, the changes in rotor diffusion factor are predicted by the summation of the individual distortions, within 3.65%.

Homemade Buckeye-Pi: A Learning Many-Node Platform for High-Performance Parallel Computing

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Amooie, M. A.; Moortgat, J.

2017-12-01

We report on the "Buckeye-Pi" cluster, the supercomputer developed in The Ohio State University School of Earth Sciences from 128 inexpensive Raspberry Pi (RPi) 3 Model B single-board computers. Each RPi is equipped with fast Quad Core 1.2GHz ARMv8 64bit processor, 1GB of RAM, and 32GB microSD card for local storage. Therefore, the cluster has a total RAM of 128GB that is distributed on the individual nodes and a flash capacity of 4TB with 512 processors, while it benefits from low power consumption, easy portability, and low total cost. The cluster uses the Message Passing Interface protocol to manage the communications between each node. These features render our platform the most powerful RPi supercomputer to date and suitable for educational applications in high-performance-computing (HPC) and handling of large datasets. In particular, we use the Buckeye-Pi to implement optimized parallel codes in our in-house simulator for subsurface media flows with the goal of achieving a massively-parallelized scalable code. We present benchmarking results for the computational performance across various number of RPi nodes. We believe our project could inspire scientists and students to consider the proposed unconventional cluster architecture as a mainstream and a feasible learning platform for challenging engineering and scientific problems.

Improved Evolutionary Programming with Various Crossover Techniques for Optimal Power Flow Problem

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tangpatiphan, Kritsana; Yokoyama, Akihiko

This paper presents an Improved Evolutionary Programming (IEP) for solving the Optimal Power Flow (OPF) problem, which is considered as a non-linear, non-smooth, and multimodal optimization problem in power system operation. The total generator fuel cost is regarded as an objective function to be minimized. The proposed method is an Evolutionary Programming (EP)-based algorithm with making use of various crossover techniques, normally applied in Real Coded Genetic Algorithm (RCGA). The effectiveness of the proposed approach is investigated on the IEEE 30-bus system with three different types of fuel cost functions; namely the quadratic cost curve, the piecewise quadratic cost curve, and the quadratic cost curve superimposed by sine component. These three cost curves represent the generator fuel cost functions with a simplified model and more accurate models of a combined-cycle generating unit and a thermal unit with value-point loading effect respectively. The OPF solutions by the proposed method and Pure Evolutionary Programming (PEP) are observed and compared. The simulation results indicate that IEP requires less computing time than PEP with better solutions in some cases. Moreover, the influences of important IEP parameters on the OPF solution are described in details.

Computational Infrastructure for Engine Structural Performance Simulation

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Chamis, Christos C.

1997-01-01

Select computer codes developed over the years to simulate specific aspects of engine structures are described. These codes include blade impact integrated multidisciplinary analysis and optimization, progressive structural fracture, quantification of uncertainties for structural reliability and risk, benefits estimation of new technology insertion and hierarchical simulation of engine structures made from metal matrix and ceramic matrix composites. Collectively these codes constitute a unique infrastructure readiness to credibly evaluate new and future engine structural concepts throughout the development cycle from initial concept, to design and fabrication, to service performance and maintenance and repairs, and to retirement for cause and even to possible recycling. Stated differently, they provide 'virtual' concurrent engineering for engine structures total-life-cycle-cost.

Research without billing data. Econometric estimation of patient-specific costs.

PubMed

Barnett, P G

1997-06-01

This article describes a method for computing the cost of care provided to individual patients in health care systems that do not routinely generate billing data, but gather information on patient utilization and total facility costs. Aggregate data on cost and utilization were used to estimate how costs vary with characteristics of patients and facilities of the US Department of Veterans Affairs. A set of cost functions was estimated, taking advantage of the department-level organization of the data. Casemix measures were used to determine the costs of acute hospital and long-term care. Hospitalization for medical conditions cost an average of $5,642 per US Health Care Financing Administration diagnosis-related group weight; surgical hospitalizations cost $11,836. Nursing home care cost $197.33 per day, intermediate care cost $280.66 per day, psychiatric care cost $307.33 per day, and domiciliary care cost $111.84 per day. Outpatient visits cost an average of $90.36. These estimates include the cost of physician services. The econometric method presented here accounts for variation in resource use caused by casemix that is not reflected in length of stay and for the effects of medical education, research, facility size, and wage rates. Data on non-Veteran's Affairs hospital stays suggest that the method accounts for 40% of the variation in acute hospital care costs and is superior to cost estimates based on length of stay or diagnosis-related group weight alone.

Green Net Value Added as a Sustainability Metric Based on ...

EPA Pesticide Factsheets

Sustainability measurement in economics involves evaluation of environmental and economic impact in an integrated manner. In this study, system level economic data are combined with environmental impact from a life cycle assessment (LCA) of a common product. We are exploring a costing approach that captures traditional costs but also incorporates externality costs to provide a convenient, easily interpretable metric. Green Net Value Added (GNVA) is a type of full cost accounting that incorporates total revenue, the cost of materials and services, depreciation, and environmental externalities. Two, but not all, of the potential environmental impacts calculated by the standard LCIA method (TRACI) could be converted to externality cost values. We compute externality costs disaggregated by upstream sectors, full cost, and GNVA to evaluate the relative sustainability of Bounty® paper towels manufactured at two production facilities. We found that the longer running, more established line had a higher GNVA than the newer line. The dominant factors contributing to externality costs are calculated to come from the stationary sources in the supply chain: electricity generation (27-35%), refineries (20-21%), pulp and paper making (15-23%). Health related externalities from Particulate Matter (PM2.5) and Carbon Dioxide equivalent (CO2e) emissions appear largely driven by electricity usage and emissions by the facilities, followed by pulp processing and transport. Supply

A hybrid computational strategy to address WGS variant analysis in >5000 samples.

PubMed

Huang, Zhuoyi; Rustagi, Navin; Veeraraghavan, Narayanan; Carroll, Andrew; Gibbs, Richard; Boerwinkle, Eric; Venkata, Manjunath Gorentla; Yu, Fuli

2016-09-10

The decreasing costs of sequencing are driving the need for cost effective and real time variant calling of whole genome sequencing data. The scale of these projects are far beyond the capacity of typical computing resources available with most research labs. Other infrastructures like the cloud AWS environment and supercomputers also have limitations due to which large scale joint variant calling becomes infeasible, and infrastructure specific variant calling strategies either fail to scale up to large datasets or abandon joint calling strategies. We present a high throughput framework including multiple variant callers for single nucleotide variant (SNV) calling, which leverages hybrid computing infrastructure consisting of cloud AWS, supercomputers and local high performance computing infrastructures. We present a novel binning approach for large scale joint variant calling and imputation which can scale up to over 10,000 samples while producing SNV callsets with high sensitivity and specificity. As a proof of principle, we present results of analysis on Cohorts for Heart And Aging Research in Genomic Epidemiology (CHARGE) WGS freeze 3 dataset in which joint calling, imputation and phasing of over 5300 whole genome samples was produced in under 6 weeks using four state-of-the-art callers. The callers used were SNPTools, GATK-HaplotypeCaller, GATK-UnifiedGenotyper and GotCloud. We used Amazon AWS, a 4000-core in-house cluster at Baylor College of Medicine, IBM power PC Blue BioU at Rice and Rhea at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) for the computation. AWS was used for joint calling of 180 TB of BAM files, and ORNL and Rice supercomputers were used for the imputation and phasing step. All other steps were carried out on the local compute cluster. The entire operation used 5.2 million core hours and only transferred a total of 6 TB of data across the platforms. Even with increasing sizes of whole genome datasets, ensemble joint calling of SNVs for low coverage data can be accomplished in a scalable, cost effective and fast manner by using heterogeneous computing platforms without compromising on the quality of variants.

Cost-Effective Cloud Computing: A Case Study Using the Comparative Genomics Tool, Roundup

PubMed Central

Kudtarkar, Parul; DeLuca, Todd F.; Fusaro, Vincent A.; Tonellato, Peter J.; Wall, Dennis P.

2010-01-01

Background Comparative genomics resources, such as ortholog detection tools and repositories are rapidly increasing in scale and complexity. Cloud computing is an emerging technological paradigm that enables researchers to dynamically build a dedicated virtual cluster and may represent a valuable alternative for large computational tools in bioinformatics. In the present manuscript, we optimize the computation of a large-scale comparative genomics resource—Roundup—using cloud computing, describe the proper operating principles required to achieve computational efficiency on the cloud, and detail important procedures for improving cost-effectiveness to ensure maximal computation at minimal costs. Methods Utilizing the comparative genomics tool, Roundup, as a case study, we computed orthologs among 902 fully sequenced genomes on Amazon’s Elastic Compute Cloud. For managing the ortholog processes, we designed a strategy to deploy the web service, Elastic MapReduce, and maximize the use of the cloud while simultaneously minimizing costs. Specifically, we created a model to estimate cloud runtime based on the size and complexity of the genomes being compared that determines in advance the optimal order of the jobs to be submitted. Results We computed orthologous relationships for 245,323 genome-to-genome comparisons on Amazon’s computing cloud, a computation that required just over 200 hours and cost $8,000 USD, at least 40% less than expected under a strategy in which genome comparisons were submitted to the cloud randomly with respect to runtime. Our cost savings projections were based on a model that not only demonstrates the optimal strategy for deploying RSD to the cloud, but also finds the optimal cluster size to minimize waste and maximize usage. Our cost-reduction model is readily adaptable for other comparative genomics tools and potentially of significant benefit to labs seeking to take advantage of the cloud as an alternative to local computing infrastructure. PMID:21258651

Fabrication of low cost soft tissue prostheses with the desktop 3D printer

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

He, Yong; Xue, Guang-Huai; Fu, Jian-Zhong

2014-11-01

Soft tissue prostheses such as artificial ear, eye and nose are widely used in the maxillofacial rehabilitation. In this report we demonstrate how to fabricate soft prostheses mold with a low cost desktop 3D printer. The fabrication method used is referred to as Scanning Printing Polishing Casting (SPPC). Firstly the anatomy is scanned with a 3D scanner, then a tissue casting mold is designed on computer and printed with a desktop 3D printer. Subsequently, a chemical polishing method is used to polish the casting mold by removing the staircase effect and acquiring a smooth surface. Finally, the last step is to cast medical grade silicone into the mold. After the silicone is cured, the fine soft prostheses can be removed from the mold. Utilizing the SPPC method, soft prostheses with smooth surface and complicated structure can be fabricated at a low cost. Accordingly, the total cost of fabricating ear prosthesis is about $30, which is much lower than the current soft prostheses fabrication methods.

Fabrication of low cost soft tissue prostheses with the desktop 3D printer

PubMed Central

He, Yong; Xue, Guang-huai; Fu, Jian-zhong

2014-01-01

Soft tissue prostheses such as artificial ear, eye and nose are widely used in the maxillofacial rehabilitation. In this report we demonstrate how to fabricate soft prostheses mold with a low cost desktop 3D printer. The fabrication method used is referred to as Scanning Printing Polishing Casting (SPPC). Firstly the anatomy is scanned with a 3D scanner, then a tissue casting mold is designed on computer and printed with a desktop 3D printer. Subsequently, a chemical polishing method is used to polish the casting mold by removing the staircase effect and acquiring a smooth surface. Finally, the last step is to cast medical grade silicone into the mold. After the silicone is cured, the fine soft prostheses can be removed from the mold. Utilizing the SPPC method, soft prostheses with smooth surface and complicated structure can be fabricated at a low cost. Accordingly, the total cost of fabricating ear prosthesis is about $30, which is much lower than the current soft prostheses fabrication methods. PMID:25427880

Fabrication of low cost soft tissue prostheses with the desktop 3D printer.

PubMed

He, Yong; Xue, Guang-huai; Fu, Jian-zhong

2014-11-27

Soft tissue prostheses such as artificial ear, eye and nose are widely used in the maxillofacial rehabilitation. In this report we demonstrate how to fabricate soft prostheses mold with a low cost desktop 3D printer. The fabrication method used is referred to as Scanning Printing Polishing Casting (SPPC). Firstly the anatomy is scanned with a 3D scanner, then a tissue casting mold is designed on computer and printed with a desktop 3D printer. Subsequently, a chemical polishing method is used to polish the casting mold by removing the staircase effect and acquiring a smooth surface. Finally, the last step is to cast medical grade silicone into the mold. After the silicone is cured, the fine soft prostheses can be removed from the mold. Utilizing the SPPC method, soft prostheses with smooth surface and complicated structure can be fabricated at a low cost. Accordingly, the total cost of fabricating ear prosthesis is about $30, which is much lower than the current soft prostheses fabrication methods.

Estimation of in-situ bioremediation system cost using a hybrid Extreme Learning Machine (ELM)-particle swarm optimization approach

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yadav, Basant; Ch, Sudheer; Mathur, Shashi; Adamowski, Jan

2016-12-01

In-situ bioremediation is the most common groundwater remediation procedure used for treating organically contaminated sites. A simulation-optimization approach, which incorporates a simulation model for groundwaterflow and transport processes within an optimization program, could help engineers in designing a remediation system that best satisfies management objectives as well as regulatory constraints. In-situ bioremediation is a highly complex, non-linear process and the modelling of such a complex system requires significant computational exertion. Soft computing techniques have a flexible mathematical structure which can generalize complex nonlinear processes. In in-situ bioremediation management, a physically-based model is used for the simulation and the simulated data is utilized by the optimization model to optimize the remediation cost. The recalling of simulator to satisfy the constraints is an extremely tedious and time consuming process and thus there is need for a simulator which can reduce the computational burden. This study presents a simulation-optimization approach to achieve an accurate and cost effective in-situ bioremediation system design for groundwater contaminated with BTEX (Benzene, Toluene, Ethylbenzene, and Xylenes) compounds. In this study, the Extreme Learning Machine (ELM) is used as a proxy simulator to replace BIOPLUME III for the simulation. The selection of ELM is done by a comparative analysis with Artificial Neural Network (ANN) and Support Vector Machine (SVM) as they were successfully used in previous studies of in-situ bioremediation system design. Further, a single-objective optimization problem is solved by a coupled Extreme Learning Machine (ELM)-Particle Swarm Optimization (PSO) technique to achieve the minimum cost for the in-situ bioremediation system design. The results indicate that ELM is a faster and more accurate proxy simulator than ANN and SVM. The total cost obtained by the ELM-PSO approach is held to a minimum while successfully satisfying all the regulatory constraints of the contaminated site.

Asymptotic Analysis Of The Total Least Squares ESPRIT Algorithm'

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ottersten, B. E.; Viberg, M.; Kailath, T.

1989-11-01

This paper considers the problem of estimating the parameters of multiple narrowband signals arriving at an array of sensors. Modern approaches to this problem often involve costly procedures for calculating the estimates. The ESPRIT (Estimation of Signal Parameters via Rotational Invariance Techniques) algorithm was recently proposed as a means for obtaining accurate estimates without requiring a costly search of the parameter space. This method utilizes an array invariance to arrive at a computationally efficient multidimensional estimation procedure. Herein, the asymptotic distribution of the estimation error is derived for the Total Least Squares (TLS) version of ESPRIT. The Cramer-Rao Bound (CRB) for the ESPRIT problem formulation is also derived and found to coincide with the variance of the asymptotic distribution through numerical examples. The method is also compared to least squares ESPRIT and MUSIC as well as to the CRB for a calibrated array. Simulations indicate that the theoretic expressions can be used to accurately predict the performance of the algorithm.

32 CFR 701.52 - Computation of fees.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... correspondence and preparation costs, these fees are not recoupable from the requester. (b) DD 2086, Record of... costs, as requesters may solicit a copy of that document to ensure accurate computation of fees. Costs... 32 National Defense 5 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Computation of fees. 701.52 Section 701.52...

12 CFR 1070.22 - Fees for processing requests for CFPB records.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-01-01

... CFPB shall charge the requester for the actual direct cost of the search, including computer search time, runs, and the operator's salary. The fee for computer output will be the actual direct cost. For... and the cost of operating the computer to process a request) equals the equivalent dollar amount of...

Feasibility of a community health worker strategy for providing near and appropriate treatment of malaria in southeast Nigeria: an analysis of activities, costs and outcomes.

PubMed

Onwujekwe, Obinna; Uzochukwu, Benjamin; Ojukwu, Juliana; Dike, Nkem; Shu, Elvis

2007-02-01

Community health workers (CHWs) could be used to bring appropriate and timely treatment of malaria closer to home and there is the need to increase the body of knowledge about the feasibility of implementing the strategy. To determine the processes, costs and outcomes of design and implementation of a strategy based on use of CHWs for near and appropriate treatment of malaria. The CHW strategy was implemented in two villages (Adu and Ahani) in Enugu state, southeast Nigeria. Adu and Ahani have a population of approximately 3500 and 5000 residents, respectively. The study was conducted in four phases: (1) baseline survey; (2) design; (3) implementation, supervision and monitoring; and (4) evaluation. Interactive meeting with all the stakeholders were used to fine-tune the design of the CHW strategy. Community members that were selected by the project team with the help of community leaders were trained to become CHWs and their remuneration was through commissions on their drug sales. Community and provider's financial and non-financial costs of the startegy were computed. Non-financial costs were the highest contributor to consumer costs, while financial costs constituted more than 90% of provider costs. The total consumer cost in Ahani was US$2548, while the consumer cost in Adu was US$1585. The total provider cost in Ahani was US$4515, while in Adu it was US$4302. The unit cost cost per villager was US$1.40 in Ahani and US$1.70 in Adu, while the unit financial consumer cost per treated patient was $0.05 in both villages, respectively. The CHWs were acceptable to the people and had an increased market share out of existing malaria treatment provision strategies. The cost of starting up the CHW strategy is low and should be affordable to malaria control programs and communities. The CHW strategy is also economically viable and a potential cost-effective source for providing timely, and appropriate treatment of malaria in rural areas. It should be fine-tuned and added to malaria control armamenterium in Nigeria and other parts of sub-Saharan Africa.

High quality 4D cone-beam CT reconstruction using motion-compensated total variation regularization

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, Hua; Ma, Jianhua; Bian, Zhaoying; Zeng, Dong; Feng, Qianjin; Chen, Wufan

2017-04-01

Four dimensional cone-beam computed tomography (4D-CBCT) has great potential clinical value because of its ability to describe tumor and organ motion. But the challenge in 4D-CBCT reconstruction is the limited number of projections at each phase, which result in a reconstruction full of noise and streak artifacts with the conventional analytical algorithms. To address this problem, in this paper, we propose a motion compensated total variation regularization approach which tries to fully explore the temporal coherence of the spatial structures among the 4D-CBCT phases. In this work, we additionally conduct motion estimation/motion compensation (ME/MC) on the 4D-CBCT volume by using inter-phase deformation vector fields (DVFs). The motion compensated 4D-CBCT volume is then viewed as a pseudo-static sequence, of which the regularization function was imposed on. The regularization used in this work is the 3D spatial total variation minimization combined with 1D temporal total variation minimization. We subsequently construct a cost function for a reconstruction pass, and minimize this cost function using a variable splitting algorithm. Simulation and real patient data were used to evaluate the proposed algorithm. Results show that the introduction of additional temporal correlation along the phase direction can improve the 4D-CBCT image quality.

Demonstration of Cost-Effective, High-Performance Computing at Performance and Reliability Levels Equivalent to a 1994 Vector Supercomputer

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Babrauckas, Theresa

2000-01-01

The Affordable High Performance Computing (AHPC) project demonstrated that high-performance computing based on a distributed network of computer workstations is a cost-effective alternative to vector supercomputers for running CPU and memory intensive design and analysis tools. The AHPC project created an integrated system called a Network Supercomputer. By connecting computer work-stations through a network and utilizing the workstations when they are idle, the resulting distributed-workstation environment has the same performance and reliability levels as the Cray C90 vector Supercomputer at less than 25 percent of the C90 cost. In fact, the cost comparison between a Cray C90 Supercomputer and Sun workstations showed that the number of distributed networked workstations equivalent to a C90 costs approximately 8 percent of the C90.

A survey of computer search service costs in the academic health sciences library.

PubMed Central

Shirley, S

1978-01-01

The Norris Medical Library, University of Southern California, has recently completed an extensive survey of costs involved in the provision of computer search services beyond vendor charges for connect time and printing. In this survey costs for such items as terminal depreciation, repair contract, personnel time, and supplies are analyzed. Implications of this cost survey are discussed in relation to planning and price setting for computer search services. PMID:708953

Percutaneous cryoablation of metastatic renal cell carcinoma for local tumor control: feasibility, outcomes, and estimated cost-effectiveness for palliation.

PubMed

Bang, Hyun J; Littrup, Peter J; Goodrich, Dylan J; Currier, Brandt P; Aoun, Hussein D; Heilbrun, Lance K; Vaishampayan, Ulka; Adam, Barbara; Goodman, Allen C

2012-06-01

To assess complications, local tumor recurrences, overall survival (OS), and estimates of cost-effectiveness for multisite cryoablation (MCA) of oligometastatic renal cell carcinoma (RCC). A total of 60 computed tomography- and/or ultrasound-guided percutaneous MCA procedures were performed on 72 tumors in 27 patients (three women and 24 men). Average patient age was 63 years. Tumor location was grouped according to common metastatic sites. Established surgical selection criteria graded patient status. Median OS was determined by Kaplan-Meier method and defined life-years gained (LYGs). Estimates of MCA costs per LYG were compared with established values for systemic therapies. Total number of tumors and cryoablation procedures for each anatomic site are as follows: nephrectomy bed, 11 and 11; adrenal gland, nine and eight; paraaortic, seven and six; lung, 14 and 13; bone, 13 and 13; superficial, 12 and nine; intraperitoneal, five and three; and liver, one and one. A mean of 2.2 procedures per patient were performed, with a median clinical follow-up of 16 months. Major complication and local recurrence rates were 2% (one of 60) and 3% (two of 72), respectively. No patients were graded as having good surgical risk, but median OS was 2.69 years, with an estimated 5-year survival rate of 27%. Cryoablation remained cost-effective with or without the presence of systemic therapies according to historical cost comparisons, with an adjunctive cost-effectiveness ratio of $28,312-$59,554 per LYG. MCA was associated with very low morbidity and local tumor recurrence rates for all anatomic sites, with apparent increased OS. Even as an adjunct to systemic therapies, MCA appeared cost-effective for palliation of oligometastatic RCC. Copyright © 2012 SIR. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Modeling the Impact and Costs of Semiannual Mass Drug Administration for Accelerated Elimination of Lymphatic Filariasis

PubMed Central

de Vlas, Sake J.; Fischer, Peter U.; Weil, Gary J.; Goldman, Ann S.

2013-01-01

The Global Program to Eliminate Lymphatic Filariasis (LF) has a target date of 2020. This program is progressing well in many countries. However, progress has been slow in some countries, and others have not yet started their mass drug administration (MDA) programs. Acceleration is needed. We studied how increasing MDA frequency from once to twice per year would affect program duration and costs by using computer simulation modeling and cost projections. We used the LYMFASIM simulation model to estimate how many annual or semiannual MDA rounds would be required to eliminate LF for Indian and West African scenarios with varied pre-control endemicity and coverage levels. Results were used to estimate total program costs assuming a target population of 100,000 eligibles, a 3% discount rate, and not counting the costs of donated drugs. A sensitivity analysis was done to investigate the robustness of these results with varied assumptions for key parameters. Model predictions suggested that semiannual MDA will require the same number of MDA rounds to achieve LF elimination as annual MDA in most scenarios. Thus semiannual MDA programs should achieve this goal in half of the time required for annual programs. Due to efficiency gains, total program costs for semiannual MDA programs are projected to be lower than those for annual MDA programs in most scenarios. A sensitivity analysis showed that this conclusion is robust. Semiannual MDA is likely to shorten the time and lower the cost required for LF elimination in countries where it can be implemented. This strategy may improve prospects for global elimination of LF by the target year 2020. PMID:23301115

Cost Effectiveness of Ofatumumab Plus Chlorambucil in First-Line Chronic Lymphocytic Leukaemia in Canada.

PubMed

Herring, William; Pearson, Isobel; Purser, Molly; Nakhaipour, Hamid Reza; Haiderali, Amin; Wolowacz, Sorrel; Jayasundara, Kavisha

2016-01-01

Our objective was to estimate the cost effectiveness of ofatumumab plus chlorambucil (OChl) versus chlorambucil in patients with chronic lymphocytic leukaemia for whom fludarabine-based therapies are considered inappropriate from the perspective of the publicly funded healthcare system in Canada. A semi-Markov model (3-month cycle length) used survival curves to govern progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS). Efficacy and safety data and health-state utility values were estimated from the COMPLEMENT-1 trial. Post-progression treatment patterns were based on clinical guidelines, Canadian treatment practices and published literature. Total and incremental expected lifetime costs (in Canadian dollars [$Can], year 2013 values), life-years and quality-adjusted life-years (QALYs) were computed. Uncertainty was assessed via deterministic and probabilistic sensitivity analyses. The discounted lifetime health and economic outcomes estimated by the model showed that, compared with chlorambucil, first-line treatment with OChl led to an increase in QALYs (0.41) and total costs ($Can27,866) and to an incremental cost-effectiveness ratio (ICER) of $Can68,647 per QALY gained. In deterministic sensitivity analyses, the ICER was most sensitive to the modelling time horizon and to the extrapolation of OS treatment effects beyond the trial duration. In probabilistic sensitivity analysis, the probability of cost effectiveness at a willingness-to-pay threshold of $Can100,000 per QALY gained was 59 %. Base-case results indicated that improved overall response and PFS for OChl compared with chlorambucil translated to improved quality-adjusted life expectancy. Sensitivity analysis suggested that OChl is likely to be cost effective subject to uncertainty associated with the presence of any long-term OS benefit and the model time horizon.

Optimal Operation System of the Integrated District Heating System with Multiple Regional Branches

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kim, Ui Sik; Park, Tae Chang; Kim, Lae-Hyun; Yeo, Yeong Koo

This paper presents an optimal production and distribution management for structural and operational optimization of the integrated district heating system (DHS) with multiple regional branches. A DHS consists of energy suppliers and consumers, district heating pipelines network and heat storage facilities in the covered region. In the optimal management system, production of heat and electric power, regional heat demand, electric power bidding and sales, transport and storage of heat at each regional DHS are taken into account. The optimal management system is formulated as a mixed integer linear programming (MILP) where the objectives is to minimize the overall cost of the integrated DHS while satisfying the operation constraints of heat units and networks as well as fulfilling heating demands from consumers. Piecewise linear formulation of the production cost function and stairwise formulation of the start-up cost function are used to compute nonlinear cost function approximately. Evaluation of the total overall cost is based on weekly operations at each district heat branches. Numerical simulations show the increase of energy efficiency due to the introduction of the present optimal management system.

Introduction of a pan-scan protocol for blunt trauma activations: what are the consequences?

PubMed

James, Melissa K; Schubl, Sebastian D; Francois, Michael P; Doughlin, Geoffrey K; Lee, Shi-Wen

2017-01-01

The aim of this study is to determine if the introduction of a pan-scan protocol during the initial assessment for blunt trauma activations would affect missed injuries, incidental findings, treatment times, radiation exposure, and cost. A 6-month prospective study was performed on patients with blunt trauma at a level 1 trauma center. During the last 3 months of the study, a pan-scan protocol was introduced to the trauma assessment. Categorical data were analyzed by Fisher exact test and continuous data were analyzed by Mann-Whitney nonparametric test. There were a total of 220 patients in the pre-pan-scan period and 206 patients during the pan-scan period. There was no significant difference in injury severity or mortality between the groups. Introduction of the pan-scan protocol substantially reduced the incidence of missed injuries from 3.2% to 0.5%, the length of stay in the emergency department by 68.2 minutes (95% confidence interval [CI], -134.4 to -2.1), and the mean time to the first operating room visit by 1465 minutes (95% CI, -2519 to -411). In contrast, fixed computed tomographic scan cost increased by $48.1 (95% CI, 32-64.1) per patient; however, total radiology cost per patient decreased by $50 (95% CI, -271.1 to 171.4). In addition, the rate of incidental findings increased by 14.4% and the average radiation exposure per patient was 8.2 mSv (95% CI, 5.0-11.3) greater during the pan-scan period. Although there are advantages to whole-body computed tomography, elucidation of the appropriate blunt trauma patient population is warranted when implementing a pan-scan protocol. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Health economic evaluation of Gd-EOB-DTPA MRI vs ECCM-MRI and multi-detector computed tomography in patients with suspected hepatocellular carcinoma in Thailand and South Korea.

PubMed

Lee, Jeong-Min; Kim, Myeong-Jin; Phongkitkarun, Sith; Sobhonslidsuk, Abhasnee; Holtorf, Anke-Peggy; Rinde, Harald; Bergmann, Karsten

2016-08-01

The effectiveness of treatment decisions and economic outcomes of using gadolinium ethoxybenzyl diethylenetriamine pentaacetic acid-enhanced magnetic resonance imaging (Gd-EOB-DTPA-MRI) were compared with extracellular contrast media-enhanced MRI (ECCM-MRI) and multi-detector computed tomography (MDCT) as initial procedures in patients with suspected hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) in South Korea and Thailand. A decision-tree model simulated the clinical pathway for patients with suspected HCC from the first imaging procedure to a confirmed treatment decision. Input data (probabilities and resource consumptions) were estimated and validated by clinical experts. Costs for diagnostic alternatives and related treatment options were derived from published sources, taking into account both payer's and hospital's perspectives. All experts from Korea and Thailand agreed that Gd-EOB-DTPA-MRI yields the highest diagnostic certainty and minimizes the need for additional confirmatory diagnostic procedures in HCC. In Korea, from the payer's perspective, total cost was USD $3087/patient to reach a confirmed treatment decision using Gd-EOB-DTPA-MRI (vs $3205/patient for MDCT and $3403/patient for ECCM-MRI). From the hospital's perspective, Gd-EOB-DTPA-MRI incurred the lowest cost ($2289/patient vs $2320/patient and $2528/patient, respectively). In Thailand, Gd-EOB-DTPA-MRI was the least costly alternative for the payer ($702/patient vs $931/patient for MDCT and $873/patient for ECCM-MRI). From the hospital's perspective, costs were $1106/patient, $1178/patient, and $1087/patient for Gd-EOB-DTPA-MRI, MDCT, and ECCM-MRI, respectively. Gd-EOB-DTPA-MRI as an initial imaging procedure in patients with suspected HCC provides better diagnostic certainty and relevant statutory health insurance cost savings in Thailand and Korea, compared with ECCM-MRI and MDCT.

Method and computer program product for maintenance and modernization backlogging

DOEpatents

Mattimore, Bernard G; Reynolds, Paul E; Farrell, Jill M

2013-02-19

According to one embodiment, a computer program product for determining future facility conditions includes a computer readable medium having computer readable program code stored therein. The computer readable program code includes computer readable program code for calculating a time period specific maintenance cost, for calculating a time period specific modernization factor, and for calculating a time period specific backlog factor. Future facility conditions equal the time period specific maintenance cost plus the time period specific modernization factor plus the time period specific backlog factor. In another embodiment, a computer-implemented method for calculating future facility conditions includes calculating a time period specific maintenance cost, calculating a time period specific modernization factor, and calculating a time period specific backlog factor. Future facility conditions equal the time period specific maintenance cost plus the time period specific modernization factor plus the time period specific backlog factor. Other embodiments are also presented.

COMPUTER PROGRAM FOR CALCULATING THE COST OF DRINKING WATER TREATMENT SYSTEMS

EPA Science Inventory

This FORTRAN computer program calculates the construction and operation/maintenance costs for 45 centralized unit treatment processes for water supply. The calculated costs are based on various design parameters and raw water quality. These cost data are applicable to small size ...

Total medical costs of treating femoral neck fracture patients with hemi- or total hip arthroplasty: a cost analysis of a multicenter prospective study.

PubMed

Burgers, P T P W; Hoogendoorn, M; Van Woensel, E A C; Poolman, R W; Bhandari, M; Patka, P; Van Lieshout, E M M

2016-06-01

The aim of this study was to determine the total medical costs for treating displaced femoral neck fractures with hemi- or total hip arthroplasty in fit elderly patients. The mean total costs per patient at 2 years of follow-up were €26,399. These results contribute to cost awareness. The absolute number of hip fractures is rising and increases the already significant burden on society. The aim of this study was to determine the mean total medical costs per patient for treating displaced femoral neck fractures with hemi- or total hip arthroplasty in fit elderly patients. The population was the Dutch sample of an international randomized controlled trial consisting of femoral neck fracture patients treated with hemi- or total hip arthroplasty. Patient data and health care utilization were prospectively collected during a total follow-up period of 2 years. Costs were separated into costs for hospital care during primary stay, hospital costs for clinical follow-up, and costs generated outside the hospital during rehabilitation. Multiple imputations were used to account for missing data. Data of 141 participants (mean age 81 years) were included in the analysis. The 2-year mortality rate was 19 %. The mean total cost per patient after 10 weeks of follow-up was €15,216. After 1 and 2 years of follow-up the mean total costs were €23,869 and €26,399, respectively. Rehabilitation was the main cost determinant, and accounted for 46 % of total costs. Primary hospital admission days accounted for 22 % of the total costs, index surgery for 11 %, and physical therapy for 7 %. The main cost determinants for hemi- or total hip arthroplasty after treatment of displaced femoral neck fractures (€26,399 per patient until 2 years) were rehabilitation and nursing homes. Most of the costs were made in the first year. Reducing costs after hip fracture surgery should focus on improving the duration and efficiency of the rehabilitation phase.

Assessment of solar-assisted gas-fired heat pump systems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lansing, F. L.

1981-01-01

As a possible application for the Goldstone Energy Project, the performance of a 10 ton heat pump unit using a hybrid solar gas energy source was evaluated in an effort to optimize the solar collector size. The heat pump system is designed to provide all the cooling and/or heating requirements of a selected office building. The system performance is to be augmented in the heating mode by utilizing the waste heat from the power cycle. A simplified system analysis is described to assess and compute interrrelationships of the engine, heat pump, and solar and building performance parameters, and to optimize the solar concentrator/building area ratio for a minimum total system cost. In addition, four alternative heating cooling systems, commonly used for building comfort, are described; their costs are compared, and are found to be less competitive with the gas solar heat pump system at the projected solar equipment costs.

Estimating costs and performance of systems for machine processing of remotely sensed data

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Ballard, R. J.; Eastwood, L. F., Jr.

1977-01-01

This paper outlines a method for estimating computer processing times and costs incurred in producing information products from digital remotely sensed data. The method accounts for both computation and overhead, and may be applied to any serial computer. The method is applied to estimate the cost and computer time involved in producing Level II Land Use and Vegetative Cover Maps for a five-state midwestern region. The results show that the amount of data to be processed overloads some example computer systems, but that the processing is feasible on others.

26 CFR 7.57(d)-1 - Election with respect to straight line recovery of intangibles.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... Tax Reform Act of 1976. Under this election taxpayers may use cost depletion to compute straight line... wells to which the election applies, cost depletion to compute straight line recovery of intangibles for... whether or not the taxpayer uses cost depletion in computing taxable income. (5) The election is made by a...

The Processing Cost of Reference Set Computation: Acquisition of Stress Shift and Focus

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Reinhart, Tanya

2004-01-01

Reference set computation -- the construction of a (global) comparison set to determine whether a given derivation is appropriate in context -- comes with a processing cost. I argue that this cost is directly visible at the acquisition stage: In those linguistic areas in which it has been independently established that such computation is indeed…

Some Useful Cost-Benefit Criteria for Evaluating Computer-Based Test Delivery Models and Systems

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Luecht, Richard M.

2005-01-01

Computer-based testing (CBT) is typically implemented using one of three general test delivery models: (1) multiple fixed testing (MFT); (2) computer-adaptive testing (CAT); or (3) multistage testing (MSTs). This article reviews some of the real cost drivers associated with CBT implementation--focusing on item production costs, the costs…

Prevalence of temporary social security benefits due to respiratory disease in Brazil.

PubMed

Ildefonso, Simone de Andrade Goulart; Barbosa-Branco, Anadergh; Albuquerque-Oliveira, Paulo Rogério

2009-01-01

To determine the prevalence of temporary social security benefits due to respiratory disease granted to employees, as well as the number of lost workdays and costs resulting from those in Brazil between 2003 and 2004. Cross-sectional study using data obtained from the Unified System of Benefits of the Brazilian Institute of Social Security (INSS, Instituto Nacional de Seguro Social) and the Brazilian Social Registry Database. Data regarding gender, age, diagnosis and type of economic activity, as well as type, duration and cost of benefits, were compiled. Respiratory diseases accounted for 1.3% of the total number of temporary social security benefits granted by INSS, with a prevalence rate of 9.92 (per 10,000 employment contracts). Females and individuals older than 50 years of age were the most affected. Non-work-related benefits were more common than were work-related benefits. The most prevalent diseases were pneumonia, asthma and COPD, followed by laryngeal and vocal cord diseases. The most prevalent types of economic activity were auxiliary transportation equipment manufacturing, tobacco product manufacturing and computer-related activities. The mean duration of benefits was 209.68 days, with a mean cost of R$ 4,495.30 per occurrence. Respiratory diseases caused by exogenous agents demanded longer sick leave (mean, 296.72 days) and greater cost (mean, R$ 7,105.74). The most prevalent diseases were airway diseases and pneumonia. Workers from auxiliary transportation equipment manufacturing, tobacco product manufacturing and computer-related activities were the most affected. Diseases caused by exogenous agents demanded longer sick leaves and resulted in greater costs.

Societal consequences of Title II of Public Law 92-513: Motor Vehicle Information and Cost Savings Act. Final report, May 1974--Mar 1975

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

Northrop, G.M.

1975-06-01

Societal consequences of the availability, under Title II, Public Law 92-513, of information on crashworthiness, crash repair cost, routine maintenance and repair cost, and insurance cost are investigated. Surveys of small groups of private passenger car buyers and fleet buyers were conducted, and the results were analyzed. Three simple computer models were prepared: (1) an Accident Model to compare the number of occupants suffering fatal or serious injuries under assumed car-buying behavior with and without the availability of Title II information and changes made by car manufacturers that modify crashworthiness and car weight; (2) a New Car Sales Model tomore » determine the impact of car-buying behavior on 22 societal elements involving consumer expenditures and employment, sales margin, and value added for dealers, car manufacturers, and industrial suppliers; and (3) a Car Operations Model to determine the impact of car-buying behavior on the total gasoline consumption cost, crash repair cost, routine maintenance, repair cost, and insurance cost. Projections of car-buying behavior over a 10-year period (1976-1985) were made and results presented in the form of 10-year average values of the percent difference between results under 'With Title II' and 'Without Title II' information.« less

Vehicle routing problem with time windows using natural inspired algorithms

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pratiwi, A. B.; Pratama, A.; Sa’diyah, I.; Suprajitno, H.

2018-03-01

Process of distribution of goods needs a strategy to make the total cost spent for operational activities minimized. But there are several constrains have to be satisfied which are the capacity of the vehicles and the service time of the customers. This Vehicle Routing Problem with Time Windows (VRPTW) gives complex constrains problem. This paper proposes natural inspired algorithms for dealing with constrains of VRPTW which involves Bat Algorithm and Cat Swarm Optimization. Bat Algorithm is being hybrid with Simulated Annealing, the worst solution of Bat Algorithm is replaced by the solution from Simulated Annealing. Algorithm which is based on behavior of cats, Cat Swarm Optimization, is improved using Crow Search Algorithm to make simplier and faster convergence. From the computational result, these algorithms give good performances in finding the minimized total distance. Higher number of population causes better computational performance. The improved Cat Swarm Optimization with Crow Search gives better performance than the hybridization of Bat Algorithm and Simulated Annealing in dealing with big data.

Malignant tumors of the maxilla: virtual planning and real-time rehabilitation with custom-made R-zygoma fixtures and carbon-graphite fiber-reinforced polymer prosthesis.

PubMed

Ekstrand, Karl; Hirsch, Jan-M

2008-03-01

Oral cancer is a mutilating disease. Because of the expanding application of computer technology in medicine, new methods are constantly evolving. This project leads into a new technology in maxillofacial reconstructive therapy using a redesigned zygoma fixture. Previous development experiences showed that the procedure was time-consuming and painful for the patients. Frequent episodes of sedation or general anesthetics were required and the rehabilitation is costly. The aim of our new treatment goal was to allow the patients to wake up after tumor surgery with a functional rehabilitation in place. Stereolithographic models were introduced to produce a model from the three-dimensional computed tomography (CT). A guide with the proposed resection was fabricated, and the real-time maxillectomy was performed. From the postoperative CT, a second stereolithographic model was manufactured and in addition, a stent for the optimal position of the implants. Customized zygoma implants were installed (R-zygoma, Integration AB, Göteborg, Sweden). A fixed construction was fabricated by using a new material based on poly(methylacrylate) reinforced with carbon/graphite fibers and attached to the implants. On the same master cast, a separate obturator was fabricated in permanent soft silicon. The result of this project showed that it was possible to create a virtual plan preoperatively to apply during surgery in order for the patient to wake up functionally rehabilitated. From a quality-of-life perspective, it is an advantage to be rehabilitated fast. By using new computer technology, pain and discomfort are less and the total rehabilitation is faster, which in turn reduces days in hospital and thereby total costs.

Satellite broadcasting system study

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1972-01-01

The study to develop a system model and computer program representative of broadcasting satellite systems employing community-type receiving terminals is reported. The program provides a user-oriented tool for evaluating performance/cost tradeoffs, synthesizing minimum cost systems for a given set of system requirements, and performing sensitivity analyses to identify critical parameters and technology. The performance/ costing philosophy and what is meant by a minimum cost system is shown graphically. Topics discussed include: main line control program, ground segment model, space segment model, cost models and launch vehicle selection. Several examples of minimum cost systems resulting from the computer program are presented. A listing of the computer program is also included.

Constrained Total Generalized p-Variation Minimization for Few-View X-Ray Computed Tomography Image Reconstruction.

PubMed

Zhang, Hanming; Wang, Linyuan; Yan, Bin; Li, Lei; Cai, Ailong; Hu, Guoen

2016-01-01

Total generalized variation (TGV)-based computed tomography (CT) image reconstruction, which utilizes high-order image derivatives, is superior to total variation-based methods in terms of the preservation of edge information and the suppression of unfavorable staircase effects. However, conventional TGV regularization employs l1-based form, which is not the most direct method for maximizing sparsity prior. In this study, we propose a total generalized p-variation (TGpV) regularization model to improve the sparsity exploitation of TGV and offer efficient solutions to few-view CT image reconstruction problems. To solve the nonconvex optimization problem of the TGpV minimization model, we then present an efficient iterative algorithm based on the alternating minimization of augmented Lagrangian function. All of the resulting subproblems decoupled by variable splitting admit explicit solutions by applying alternating minimization method and generalized p-shrinkage mapping. In addition, approximate solutions that can be easily performed and quickly calculated through fast Fourier transform are derived using the proximal point method to reduce the cost of inner subproblems. The accuracy and efficiency of the simulated and real data are qualitatively and quantitatively evaluated to validate the efficiency and feasibility of the proposed method. Overall, the proposed method exhibits reasonable performance and outperforms the original TGV-based method when applied to few-view problems.

The economic cost of physical inactivity in China.

PubMed

Zhang, Juan; Chaaban, Jad

2013-01-01

To estimate the total economic burden of physical inactivity in China. The costs of physical inactivity combine the medical and non-medical costs of five major Non Communicable Diseases (NCDs) associated with inactivity. The national data from the Chinese Behavioral Risk Factors Surveillance Surveys (2007) and the National Health Service Survey (2003) are used to compute population attributable risks (PARs) of inactivity for each major NCD. Costs specific to inactivity are obtained by multiplying each disease costs by the PAR for each NCD, by incorporating the inactivity effects through overweight and obesity. Physical inactivity contributes between 12% and 19% to the risks associated with the five major NCDs in China, namely coronary heart disease, stroke, hypertension, cancer, and type 2 diabetes. Physical inactivity is imposing a substantial economic burden on the country, as it is responsible alone for more than 15% of the medical and non-medical yearly costs of the main NCDs in the country. The high economic burden of physical inactivity implies the need to develop more programs and interventions that address this modifiable behavioral risk, in order to curb the rising NCDs epidemic in China. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Clinical and cost effectiveness of computer treatment for aphasia post stroke (Big CACTUS): study protocol for a randomised controlled trial.

PubMed

Palmer, Rebecca; Cooper, Cindy; Enderby, Pam; Brady, Marian; Julious, Steven; Bowen, Audrey; Latimer, Nicholas

2015-01-27

Aphasia affects the ability to speak, comprehend spoken language, read and write. One third of stroke survivors experience aphasia. Evidence suggests that aphasia can continue to improve after the first few months with intensive speech and language therapy, which is frequently beyond what resources allow. The development of computer software for language practice provides an opportunity for self-managed therapy. This pragmatic randomised controlled trial will investigate the clinical and cost effectiveness of a computerised approach to long-term aphasia therapy post stroke. A total of 285 adults with aphasia at least four months post stroke will be randomly allocated to either usual care, computerised intervention in addition to usual care or attention and activity control in addition to usual care. Those in the intervention group will receive six months of self-managed word finding practice on their home computer with monthly face-to-face support from a volunteer/assistant. Those in the attention control group will receive puzzle activities, supplemented by monthly telephone calls. Study delivery will be coordinated by 20 speech and language therapy departments across the United Kingdom. Outcome measures will be made at baseline, six, nine and 12 months after randomisation by blinded speech and language therapist assessors. Primary outcomes are the change in number of words (of personal relevance) named correctly at six months and improvement in functional conversation. Primary outcomes will be analysed using a Hochberg testing procedure. Significance will be declared if differences in both word retrieval and functional conversation at six months are significant at the 5% level, or if either comparison is significant at 2.5%. A cost utility analysis will be undertaken from the NHS and personal social service perspective. Differences between costs and quality-adjusted life years in the three groups will be described and the incremental cost effectiveness ratio will be calculated. Treatment fidelity will be monitored. This is the first fully powered trial of the clinical and cost effectiveness of computerised aphasia therapy. Specific challenges in designing the protocol are considered. Registered with Current Controlled Trials ISRCTN68798818 on 18 February 2014.

A case study of tuning MapReduce for efficient Bioinformatics in the cloud

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

Shi, Lizhen; Wang, Zhong; Yu, Weikuan

The combination of the Hadoop MapReduce programming model and cloud computing allows biological scientists to analyze next-generation sequencing (NGS) data in a timely and cost-effective manner. Cloud computing platforms remove the burden of IT facility procurement and management from end users and provide ease of access to Hadoop clusters. However, biological scientists are still expected to choose appropriate Hadoop parameters for running their jobs. More importantly, the available Hadoop tuning guidelines are either obsolete or too general to capture the particular characteristics of bioinformatics applications. In this paper, we aim to minimize the cloud computing cost spent on bioinformatics datamore » analysis by optimizing the extracted significant Hadoop parameters. When using MapReduce-based bioinformatics tools in the cloud, the default settings often lead to resource underutilization and wasteful expenses. We choose k-mer counting, a representative application used in a large number of NGS data analysis tools, as our study case. Experimental results show that, with the fine-tuned parameters, we achieve a total of 4× speedup compared with the original performance (using the default settings). Finally, this paper presents an exemplary case for tuning MapReduce-based bioinformatics applications in the cloud, and documents the key parameters that could lead to significant performance benefits.« less

AIRTOURS: Application of an Interactive Computer Model to Analyze the Manpower Requirements and Operational Tour Opportunities of the Aviation Warfare Community.

DTIC Science & Technology

1980-12-01

U through 30 Z, representing individual account billets primarily composed of student and transient officer requirements. In total, 64 individual...necessitating immediate changes to current policies, test proposed alternatives, and analyze outcomes in a cost effective manner [Ref. 5]. Application of...officers in fact, for 1981 the model projects that 29% of tour A billets will be unfilled. However, the model does not account for various detailing

A Model to Predict Final Cost Growth in a Weapon System Development Program

DTIC Science & Technology

1975-08-01

Manual Calculation ..... .............. ... 117 11. Data and Results of 3 x 2 Manual Calculation .................... .. 119 12. Quarterly F-5E... manually calculated. The data and results are in Table 10. The computer program for these calculations is listed in Figure 12 with results in Figure...13. Table 10 Data and Results of 2 x 2 Manual Calculation Outcome Aspect Poor Acceptable 1 .5 .5 2 .3 .7 The total number of events possible are: (2)2

Low-Budget Computer Programming in Your School (An Alternative to the Cost of Large Computers). Illinois Series on Educational Applications of Computers. No. 14.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dennis, J. Richard; Thomson, David

This paper is concerned with a low cost alternative for providing computer experience to secondary school students. The brief discussion covers the programmable calculator and its relevance for teaching the concepts and the rudiments of computer programming and for computer problem solving. A list of twenty-five programming activities related to…

Computers in Education: Their Use and Cost, Education Automation Monograph Number 2.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

American Data Processing, Inc., Detroit, MI.

This monograph on the cost and use of computers in education consists of two parts. Part I is a report of the President's Science Advisory Committee concerning the cost and use of the computer in undergraduate, secondary, and higher education. In addition, the report contains a discussion of the interaction between research and educational uses of…

A computer program for analysis of fuelwood harvesting costs

Treesearch

George B. Harpole; Giuseppe Rensi

1985-01-01

The fuelwood harvesting computer program (FHP) is written in FORTRAN 60 and designed to select a collection of harvest units and systems from among alternatives to satisfy specified energy requirements at a lowest cost per million Btu's as recovered in a boiler, or thousand pounds of H2O evaporative capacity kiln drying. Computed energy costs are used as a...

The Ames Power Monitoring System

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Osetinsky, Leonid; Wang, David

2003-01-01

The Ames Power Monitoring System (APMS) is a centralized system of power meters, computer hardware, and specialpurpose software that collects and stores electrical power data by various facilities at Ames Research Center (ARC). This system is needed because of the large and varying nature of the overall ARC power demand, which has been observed to range from 20 to 200 MW. Large portions of peak demand can be attributed to only three wind tunnels (60, 180, and 100 MW, respectively). The APMS helps ARC avoid or minimize costly demand charges by enabling wind-tunnel operators, test engineers, and the power manager to monitor total demand for center in real time. These persons receive the information they need to manage and schedule energy-intensive research in advance and to adjust loads in real time to ensure that the overall maximum allowable demand is not exceeded. The APMS (see figure) includes a server computer running the Windows NT operating system and can, in principle, include an unlimited number of power meters and client computers. As configured at the time of reporting the information for this article, the APMS includes more than 40 power meters monitoring all the major research facilities, plus 15 Windows-based client personal computers that display real-time and historical data to users via graphical user interfaces (GUIs). The power meters and client computers communicate with the server using Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol (TCP/IP) on Ethernet networks, variously, through dedicated fiber-optic cables or through the pre-existing ARC local-area network (ARCLAN). The APMS has enabled ARC to achieve significant savings ($1.2 million in 2001) in the cost of power and electric energy by helping personnel to maintain total demand below monthly allowable levels, to manage the overall power factor to avoid low power factor penalties, and to use historical system data to identify opportunities for additional energy savings. The APMS also provides power engineers and electricians with the information they need to plan modifications in advance and perform day-to-day maintenance of the ARC electric-power distribution system.

Planning and Implementing a Hospital Recycling Program at Naval Hospital, Camp Pendleton, California

DTIC Science & Technology

1992-08-01

communities have refused to license incinerators, saying "not in my back yard!" Recycling is quick, it’s economical, it can save natural resources, and...total costs - total credits) 4. Net Savings <Costs>: Present disposal Net recycling Net savings costs program costs <costs> * Assign only a...RECYCLING PROGRAM COSTS $ 9,739 (total costs - total credits) 4. Net Savings <Costs>: $ 9.287 _ $ 9.739 - S > Present disposal Net recycling Net

Computer Technology for Industry

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1979-01-01

In this age of the computer, more and more business firms are automating their operations for increased efficiency in a great variety of jobs, from simple accounting to managing inventories, from precise machining to analyzing complex structures. In the interest of national productivity, NASA is providing assistance both to longtime computer users and newcomers to automated operations. Through a special technology utilization service, NASA saves industry time and money by making available already developed computer programs which have secondary utility. A computer program is essentially a set of instructions which tells the computer how to produce desired information or effect by drawing upon its stored input. Developing a new program from scratch can be costly and time-consuming. Very often, however, a program developed for one purpose can readily be adapted to a totally different application. To help industry take advantage of existing computer technology, NASA operates the Computer Software Management and Information Center (COSMIC)(registered TradeMark),located at the University of Georgia. COSMIC maintains a large library of computer programs developed for NASA, the Department of Defense, the Department of Energy and other technology-generating agencies of the government. The Center gets a continual flow of software packages, screens them for adaptability to private sector usage, stores them and informs potential customers of their availability.

Ensemble Grouping Strategies for Embedded Stochastic Collocation Methods Applied to Anisotropic Diffusion Problems

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

D'Elia, M.; Edwards, H. C.; Hu, J.

Previous work has demonstrated that propagating groups of samples, called ensembles, together through forward simulations can dramatically reduce the aggregate cost of sampling-based uncertainty propagation methods [E. Phipps, M. D'Elia, H. C. Edwards, M. Hoemmen, J. Hu, and S. Rajamanickam, SIAM J. Sci. Comput., 39 (2017), pp. C162--C193]. However, critical to the success of this approach when applied to challenging problems of scientific interest is the grouping of samples into ensembles to minimize the total computational work. For example, the total number of linear solver iterations for ensemble systems may be strongly influenced by which samples form the ensemble whenmore » applying iterative linear solvers to parameterized and stochastic linear systems. In this paper we explore sample grouping strategies for local adaptive stochastic collocation methods applied to PDEs with uncertain input data, in particular canonical anisotropic diffusion problems where the diffusion coefficient is modeled by truncated Karhunen--Loève expansions. Finally, we demonstrate that a measure of the total anisotropy of the diffusion coefficient is a good surrogate for the number of linear solver iterations for each sample and therefore provides a simple and effective metric for grouping samples.« less

Mass screening of multiple abdominal solid organs using mobile helical computed tomography scanner--a preliminary report.

PubMed

Ishikawa, Susumu; Aoki, Jun; Ohwada, Susumu; Takahashi, Toru; Morishita, Yasuo; Ueda, Keisuke

2007-04-01

The possibility of a new screening procedure for multiple abdominal solid organs using a mobile helical computed tomography (CT) scanner was evaluated. A total of 4,543 residents, who were 40 years of age or older, received CT scanning without contrast medium. The mean age of participants was 64 years including 2,022 males and 2,521 females. A total of 2,105 abnormal findings were uniquely detected in 1,594 participants. Liver and kidney diseases including ureter occupied around 30% of total abnormal findings, respectively. Besides frequent cystic or calcified lesions, solid tumours were suspected in 56 lesions, which received further examination by specialized physicians. Five (9%) of them were confirmed as being malignant tumours including pancreatic cancer in two patients, and liver, lung and ovary cancers in one patient each, respectively. All five patients with each malignant lesion received curative operations. Small-sized abdominal aortic aneurysms and heart valve diseases were uniquely found in 22 and two patients, respectively. Qualitative diagnoses of solid tumours were difficult using CT findings without contrast medium. CT screening procedures require further investigation in aspect of the selection of examinees, CT scanning procedure, sensitivity and specificity, and cost-effectiveness.

Ensemble Grouping Strategies for Embedded Stochastic Collocation Methods Applied to Anisotropic Diffusion Problems

DOE PAGES

D'Elia, M.; Edwards, H. C.; Hu, J.; ...

2018-01-18

Previous work has demonstrated that propagating groups of samples, called ensembles, together through forward simulations can dramatically reduce the aggregate cost of sampling-based uncertainty propagation methods [E. Phipps, M. D'Elia, H. C. Edwards, M. Hoemmen, J. Hu, and S. Rajamanickam, SIAM J. Sci. Comput., 39 (2017), pp. C162--C193]. However, critical to the success of this approach when applied to challenging problems of scientific interest is the grouping of samples into ensembles to minimize the total computational work. For example, the total number of linear solver iterations for ensemble systems may be strongly influenced by which samples form the ensemble whenmore » applying iterative linear solvers to parameterized and stochastic linear systems. In this paper we explore sample grouping strategies for local adaptive stochastic collocation methods applied to PDEs with uncertain input data, in particular canonical anisotropic diffusion problems where the diffusion coefficient is modeled by truncated Karhunen--Loève expansions. Finally, we demonstrate that a measure of the total anisotropy of the diffusion coefficient is a good surrogate for the number of linear solver iterations for each sample and therefore provides a simple and effective metric for grouping samples.« less

48 CFR 42.709-4 - Computing interest.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... 48 Federal Acquisition Regulations System 1 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Computing interest. 42.709... MANAGEMENT CONTRACT ADMINISTRATION AND AUDIT SERVICES Indirect Cost Rates 42.709-4 Computing interest. For 42.709-1(a)(1)(ii), compute interest on any paid portion of the disallowed cost as follows: (a) Consider...

48 CFR 42.709-4 - Computing interest.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-10-01

... 48 Federal Acquisition Regulations System 1 2011-10-01 2011-10-01 false Computing interest. 42.709... MANAGEMENT CONTRACT ADMINISTRATION AND AUDIT SERVICES Indirect Cost Rates 42.709-4 Computing interest. For 42.709-1(a)(1)(ii), compute interest on any paid portion of the disallowed cost as follows: (a) Consider...

48 CFR 42.709-4 - Computing interest.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-10-01

... 48 Federal Acquisition Regulations System 1 2012-10-01 2012-10-01 false Computing interest. 42.709... MANAGEMENT CONTRACT ADMINISTRATION AND AUDIT SERVICES Indirect Cost Rates 42.709-4 Computing interest. For 42.709-1(a)(1)(ii), compute interest on any paid portion of the disallowed cost as follows: (a) Consider...

Determining Training Device Requirements in Army Aviation Systems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Poumade, M. L.

1984-01-01

A decision making methodology which applies the systems approach to the training problem is discussed. Training is viewed as a total system instead of a collection of individual devices and unrelated techniques. The core of the methodology is the use of optimization techniques such as the transportation algorithm and multiobjective goal programming with training task and training device specific data. The role of computers, especially automated data bases and computer simulation models, in the development of training programs is also discussed. The approach can provide significant training enhancement and cost savings over the more traditional, intuitive form of training development and device requirements process. While given from an aviation perspective, the methodology is equally applicable to other training development efforts.

Brian Hears: Online Auditory Processing Using Vectorization Over Channels

PubMed Central

Fontaine, Bertrand; Goodman, Dan F. M.; Benichoux, Victor; Brette, Romain

2011-01-01

The human cochlea includes about 3000 inner hair cells which filter sounds at frequencies between 20 Hz and 20 kHz. This massively parallel frequency analysis is reflected in models of auditory processing, which are often based on banks of filters. However, existing implementations do not exploit this parallelism. Here we propose algorithms to simulate these models by vectorizing computation over frequency channels, which are implemented in “Brian Hears,” a library for the spiking neural network simulator package “Brian.” This approach allows us to use high-level programming languages such as Python, because with vectorized operations, the computational cost of interpretation represents a small fraction of the total cost. This makes it possible to define and simulate complex models in a simple way, while all previous implementations were model-specific. In addition, we show that these algorithms can be naturally parallelized using graphics processing units, yielding substantial speed improvements. We demonstrate these algorithms with several state-of-the-art cochlear models, and show that they compare favorably with existing, less flexible, implementations. PMID:21811453

The economic costs of traffic accidents in Spain.

PubMed

Bastida, Julio López; Aguilar, Pedro Serrano; González, Beatriz Duque

2004-04-01

This study aimed to evaluate the economic impact of traffic accidents in Spain during 1997. The cost-of-illness method was used. Direct costs were divided into health services costs, insurance administration costs, and the costs of the material damages to the vehicles. Indirect costs were obtained through transformation of physical units into monetary units using the approach based on the human capital theory. The total cost of traffic accidents was 6,280.36 million euros, which amounts to 157.59 euros for each inhabitant in Spain and represents 1.35% of the gross national product. The total direct cost was 3,397.00 million euros, representing 54.1% of the total cost. The total indirect cost was 2,883.36 million euros, accounting for 45.9% of the total cost. The high socioeconomic cost of traffic accidents clearly indicates the need for the different administrations in Spain to collaborate in implementing preventive measures.

Internet Use among Ugandan Adolescents: Implications for HIV Intervention

PubMed Central

Ybarra, Michele L; Kiwanuka, Julius; Emenyonu, Nneka; Bangsberg, David R

2006-01-01

Background The Internet is fast gaining recognition as a powerful, low-cost method to deliver health intervention and prevention programs to large numbers of young people across diverse geographic regions. The feasibility and accessibility of Internet-based health interventions in resource-limited settings, where cost-effective interventions are most needed, is unknown. To determine the utility of developing technology-based interventions in resource-limited settings, availability and patterns of usage of the Internet first need to be assessed. Methods and Findings The Uganda Media and You Survey was a cross-sectional survey of Internet use among adolescents (ages 12–18 years) in Mbarara, Uganda, a municipality mainly serving a rural population in sub-Saharan Africa. Participants were randomly selected among eligible students attending one of five participating secondary day and boarding schools in Mbarara, Uganda. Of a total of 538 students selected, 93% (500) participated. Of the total respondents, 45% (223) reported ever having used the Internet, 78% (175) of whom reported going online in the previous week. As maternal education increased, so too did the odds of adolescent Internet use. Almost two in five respondents (38% [189]) reported already having used a computer or the Internet to search for health information. Over one-third (35% [173]) had used the computer or Internet to find information about HIV/AIDS, and 20% (102) had looked for sexual health information. Among Internet users, searching for HIV/AIDS information on a computer or online was significantly related to using the Internet weekly, emailing, visiting chat rooms, and playing online games. In contrast, going online at school was inversely related to looking for HIV/AIDS information via technology. If Internet access were free, 66% (330) reported that they would search for information about HIV/AIDS prevention online. Conclusions Both the desire to use, and the actual use of, the Internet to seek sexual health and HIV/AIDS information is high among secondary school students in Mbarara. The Internet may be a promising strategy to deliver low-cost HIV/AIDS risk reduction interventions in resource-limited settings with expanding Internet access. PMID:17090211

Randomized shortest-path problems: two related models.

PubMed

Saerens, Marco; Achbany, Youssef; Fouss, François; Yen, Luh

2009-08-01

This letter addresses the problem of designing the transition probabilities of a finite Markov chain (the policy) in order to minimize the expected cost for reaching a destination node from a source node while maintaining a fixed level of entropy spread throughout the network (the exploration). It is motivated by the following scenario. Suppose you have to route agents through a network in some optimal way, for instance, by minimizing the total travel cost-nothing particular up to now-you could use a standard shortest-path algorithm. Suppose, however, that you want to avoid pure deterministic routing policies in order, for instance, to allow some continual exploration of the network, avoid congestion, or avoid complete predictability of your routing strategy. In other words, you want to introduce some randomness or unpredictability in the routing policy (i.e., the routing policy is randomized). This problem, which will be called the randomized shortest-path problem (RSP), is investigated in this work. The global level of randomness of the routing policy is quantified by the expected Shannon entropy spread throughout the network and is provided a priori by the designer. Then, necessary conditions to compute the optimal randomized policy-minimizing the expected routing cost-are derived. Iterating these necessary conditions, reminiscent of Bellman's value iteration equations, allows computing an optimal policy, that is, a set of transition probabilities in each node. Interestingly and surprisingly enough, this first model, while formulated in a totally different framework, is equivalent to Akamatsu's model ( 1996 ), appearing in transportation science, for a special choice of the entropy constraint. We therefore revisit Akamatsu's model by recasting it into a sum-over-paths statistical physics formalism allowing easy derivation of all the quantities of interest in an elegant, unified way. For instance, it is shown that the unique optimal policy can be obtained by solving a simple linear system of equations. This second model is therefore more convincing because of its computational efficiency and soundness. Finally, simulation results obtained on simple, illustrative examples show that the models behave as expected.

Internet use among Ugandan adolescents: implications for HIV intervention.

PubMed

Ybarra, Michele L; Kiwanuka, Julius; Emenyonu, Nneka; Bangsberg, David R

2006-11-01

The Internet is fast gaining recognition as a powerful, low-cost method to deliver health intervention and prevention programs to large numbers of young people across diverse geographic regions. The feasibility and accessibility of Internet-based health interventions in resource-limited settings, where cost-effective interventions are most needed, is unknown. To determine the utility of developing technology-based interventions in resource-limited settings, availability and patterns of usage of the Internet first need to be assessed. The Uganda Media and You Survey was a cross-sectional survey of Internet use among adolescents (ages 12-18 years) in Mbarara, Uganda, a municipality mainly serving a rural population in sub-Saharan Africa. Participants were randomly selected among eligible students attending one of five participating secondary day and boarding schools in Mbarara, Uganda. Of a total of 538 students selected, 93% (500) participated. Of the total respondents, 45% (223) reported ever having used the Internet, 78% (175) of whom reported going online in the previous week. As maternal education increased, so too did the odds of adolescent Internet use. Almost two in five respondents (38% [189]) reported already having used a computer or the Internet to search for health information. Over one-third (35% [173]) had used the computer or Internet to find information about HIV/AIDS, and 20% (102) had looked for sexual health information. Among Internet users, searching for HIV/AIDS information on a computer or online was significantly related to using the Internet weekly, emailing, visiting chat rooms, and playing online games. In contrast, going online at school was inversely related to looking for HIV/AIDS information via technology. If Internet access were free, 66% (330) reported that they would search for information about HIV/AIDS prevention online. Both the desire to use, and the actual use of, the Internet to seek sexual health and HIV/AIDS information is high among secondary school students in Mbarara. The Internet may be a promising strategy to deliver low-cost HIV/AIDS risk reduction interventions in resource-limited settings with expanding Internet access.

76 FR 30925 - Information Collection; Submission for OMB Review, Comment Request

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2011-05-27

.../startup): None. Total Burden Cost (operating/maintenance): None. Instrument: Application and Budget.../startup): None. Total Burden Cost (operating/maintenance): None. AmeriCorps\\*\\VISTA Project Progress...,800 hours. Total Burden Cost (capital/startup): None. Total Burden Cost (operating/maintenance): None...

Quantifying and reducing statistical uncertainty in sample-based health program costing studies in low- and middle-income countries.

PubMed

Rivera-Rodriguez, Claudia L; Resch, Stephen; Haneuse, Sebastien

2018-01-01

In many low- and middle-income countries, the costs of delivering public health programs such as for HIV/AIDS, nutrition, and immunization are not routinely tracked. A number of recent studies have sought to estimate program costs on the basis of detailed information collected on a subsample of facilities. While unbiased estimates can be obtained via accurate measurement and appropriate analyses, they are subject to statistical uncertainty. Quantification of this uncertainty, for example, via standard errors and/or 95% confidence intervals, provides important contextual information for decision-makers and for the design of future costing studies. While other forms of uncertainty, such as that due to model misspecification, are considered and can be investigated through sensitivity analyses, statistical uncertainty is often not reported in studies estimating the total program costs. This may be due to a lack of awareness/understanding of (1) the technical details regarding uncertainty estimation and (2) the availability of software with which to calculate uncertainty for estimators resulting from complex surveys. We provide an overview of statistical uncertainty in the context of complex costing surveys, emphasizing the various potential specific sources that contribute to overall uncertainty. We describe how analysts can compute measures of uncertainty, either via appropriately derived formulae or through resampling techniques such as the bootstrap. We also provide an overview of calibration as a means of using additional auxiliary information that is readily available for the entire program, such as the total number of doses administered, to decrease uncertainty and thereby improve decision-making and the planning of future studies. A recent study of the national program for routine immunization in Honduras shows that uncertainty can be reduced by using information available prior to the study. This method can not only be used when estimating the total cost of delivering established health programs but also to decrease uncertainty when the interest lies in assessing the incremental effect of an intervention. Measures of statistical uncertainty associated with survey-based estimates of program costs, such as standard errors and 95% confidence intervals, provide important contextual information for health policy decision-making and key inputs for the design of future costing studies. Such measures are often not reported, possibly because of technical challenges associated with their calculation and a lack of awareness of appropriate software. Modern statistical analysis methods for survey data, such as calibration, provide a means to exploit additional information that is readily available but was not used in the design of the study to significantly improve the estimation of total cost through the reduction of statistical uncertainty.

Quantifying and reducing statistical uncertainty in sample-based health program costing studies in low- and middle-income countries

PubMed Central

Resch, Stephen

2018-01-01

Objectives: In many low- and middle-income countries, the costs of delivering public health programs such as for HIV/AIDS, nutrition, and immunization are not routinely tracked. A number of recent studies have sought to estimate program costs on the basis of detailed information collected on a subsample of facilities. While unbiased estimates can be obtained via accurate measurement and appropriate analyses, they are subject to statistical uncertainty. Quantification of this uncertainty, for example, via standard errors and/or 95% confidence intervals, provides important contextual information for decision-makers and for the design of future costing studies. While other forms of uncertainty, such as that due to model misspecification, are considered and can be investigated through sensitivity analyses, statistical uncertainty is often not reported in studies estimating the total program costs. This may be due to a lack of awareness/understanding of (1) the technical details regarding uncertainty estimation and (2) the availability of software with which to calculate uncertainty for estimators resulting from complex surveys. We provide an overview of statistical uncertainty in the context of complex costing surveys, emphasizing the various potential specific sources that contribute to overall uncertainty. Methods: We describe how analysts can compute measures of uncertainty, either via appropriately derived formulae or through resampling techniques such as the bootstrap. We also provide an overview of calibration as a means of using additional auxiliary information that is readily available for the entire program, such as the total number of doses administered, to decrease uncertainty and thereby improve decision-making and the planning of future studies. Results: A recent study of the national program for routine immunization in Honduras shows that uncertainty can be reduced by using information available prior to the study. This method can not only be used when estimating the total cost of delivering established health programs but also to decrease uncertainty when the interest lies in assessing the incremental effect of an intervention. Conclusion: Measures of statistical uncertainty associated with survey-based estimates of program costs, such as standard errors and 95% confidence intervals, provide important contextual information for health policy decision-making and key inputs for the design of future costing studies. Such measures are often not reported, possibly because of technical challenges associated with their calculation and a lack of awareness of appropriate software. Modern statistical analysis methods for survey data, such as calibration, provide a means to exploit additional information that is readily available but was not used in the design of the study to significantly improve the estimation of total cost through the reduction of statistical uncertainty. PMID:29636964

Performance, Agility and Cost of Cloud Computing Services for NASA GES DISC Giovanni Application

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pham, L.; Chen, A.; Wharton, S.; Winter, E. L.; Lynnes, C.

2013-12-01

The NASA Goddard Earth Science Data and Information Services Center (GES DISC) is investigating the performance, agility and cost of Cloud computing for GES DISC applications. Giovanni (Geospatial Interactive Online Visualization ANd aNalysis Infrastructure), one of the core applications at the GES DISC for online climate-related Earth science data access, subsetting, analysis, visualization, and downloading, was used to evaluate the feasibility and effort of porting an application to the Amazon Cloud Services platform. The performance and the cost of running Giovanni on the Amazon Cloud were compared to similar parameters for the GES DISC local operational system. A Giovanni Time-Series analysis of aerosol absorption optical depth (388nm) from OMI (Ozone Monitoring Instrument)/Aura was selected for these comparisons. All required data were pre-cached in both the Cloud and local system to avoid data transfer delays. The 3-, 6-, 12-, and 24-month data were used for analysis on the Cloud and local system respectively, and the processing times for the analysis were used to evaluate system performance. To investigate application agility, Giovanni was installed and tested on multiple Cloud platforms. The cost of using a Cloud computing platform mainly consists of: computing, storage, data requests, and data transfer in/out. The Cloud computing cost is calculated based on the hourly rate, and the storage cost is calculated based on the rate of Gigabytes per month. Cost for incoming data transfer is free, and for data transfer out, the cost is based on the rate in Gigabytes. The costs for a local server system consist of buying hardware/software, system maintenance/updating, and operating cost. The results showed that the Cloud platform had a 38% better performance and cost 36% less than the local system. This investigation shows the potential of cloud computing to increase system performance and lower the overall cost of system management.

The potential economic burden of Zika in the continental United States.

PubMed

Lee, Bruce Y; Alfaro-Murillo, Jorge A; Parpia, Alyssa S; Asti, Lindsey; Wedlock, Patrick T; Hotez, Peter J; Galvani, Alison P

2017-04-01

As the Zika virus epidemic continues to spread internationally, countries such as the United States must determine how much to invest in prevention, control, and response. Fundamental to these decisions is quantifying the potential economic burden of Zika under different scenarios. To inform such decision making, our team developed a computational model to forecast the potential economic burden of Zika across six states in the US (Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Texas) which are at greatest risk of Zika emergence, under a wide range of attack rates, scenarios and circumstances. In order to accommodate a wide range of possibilities, different scenarios explored the effects of varying the attack rate from 0.01% to 10%. Across the six states, an attack rate of 0.01% is estimated to cost $183.4 million to society ($117.1 million in direct medical costs and $66.3 million in productivity losses), 0.025% would result in $198.6 million ($119.4 million and $79.2 million), 0.10% would result in $274.6 million ($130.8 million and $143.8 million) and 1% would result in $1.2 billion ($268.0 million and $919.2 million). Our model and study show how direct medical costs, Medicaid costs, productivity losses, and total costs to society may vary with different attack rates across the six states and the circumstances at which they may exceed certain thresholds (e.g., Zika prevention and control funding allocations that are being debated by the US government). A Zika attack rate of 0.3% across the six states at greatest risk of Zika infection, would result in total costs that exceed $0.5 billion, an attack rate of 1% would exceed $1 billion, and an attack rate of 2% would exceed $2 billion.

Effect of obesity on cost per quality-adjusted life years gained following anterior cervical discectomy and fusion in elective degenerative pathology.

PubMed

Chotai, Silky; Sielatycki, J Alex; Parker, Scott L; Sivaganesan, Ahilan; Kay, Harrison L; Stonko, David P; Wick, Joseph B; McGirt, Matthew J; Devin, Clinton J

2016-11-01

Obese patients have greater comorbidities along with higher risk of complications and greater costs after spine surgery, which may result in increased cost and lower quality of life compared with their non-obese counterparts. The aim of the present study was to determine cost-utility following anterior cervical discectomy and fusion (ACDF) in obese patients. This study analyzed prospectively collected data. Patients undergoing elective ACDF for degenerative cervical pathology at a single academic institution were included in the study. Cost and quality-adjusted life years (QALYs) were the outcome measures. One- and two-year medical resource utilization, missed work, and health state values (QALYs) were assessed. Two-year resource use was multiplied by unit costs based on Medicare national payment amounts (direct cost). Patient and caregiver workday losses were multiplied by the self-reported gross-of-tax wage rate (indirect cost). Total cost (direct+indirect) was used to compute cost per QALY gained. Patients were defined as obese for body mass index (BMI) ≥35 based on the WHO definition of class II obesity. A subgroup analysis was conducted in morbidly obese patients (BMI≥40). There were significant improvements in pain (neck pain or arm pain), disability (Neck Disability Index), and quality of life (EuroQol-5D and Short Form-12) at 2 years after surgery (p<.001). There was no significant difference in post-discharge health-care resource utilization, direct cost, indirect cost, and total cost between obese and non-obese patients at postoperative 1-year and 2-year follow-up. Mean 2-year direct cost for obese patients was $19,225±$8,065 and $17,635±$6,413 for non-obese patients (p=.14). There was no significant difference in the mean total 2-year cost between obese ($23,144±$9,216) and non-obese ($22,183±$10,564) patients (p=.48). Obese patients had a lower mean cumulative gain in QALYs versus non-obese patients at 2-years (0.34 vs. 0.42, p=.32). Two-year cost-utility in obese ($68,070/QALY) versus non-obese patients ($52,816/QALY) was not significantly different (p=.11). Morbidly obese patients had lower QALYs gained (0.17) and higher cost per QALYs gained ($138,094/QALY) at 2 years. Anterior cervical discectomy and fusion provided a significant gain in health state utility in obese patients, with a mean 2-year cost-utility of $68,070 per QALYs gained, which can be considered moderately cost-effective. Morbidly obese patients had lower cost-effectiveness; however, surgery does provide a significant improvement in outcomes. Obesity, and specifically morbid obesity, should to be taken into consideration as physician and hospital reimbursements move toward a bundled model. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

The operation of the century: total hip replacement.

PubMed

Learmonth, Ian D; Young, Claire; Rorabeck, Cecil

2007-10-27

In the 1960s, total hip replacement revolutionised management of elderly patients crippled with arthritis, with very good long-term results. Today, young patients present for hip-replacement surgery hoping to restore their quality of life, which typically includes physically demanding activities. Advances in bioengineering technology have driven development of hip prostheses. Both cemented and uncemented hips can provide durable fixation. Better materials and design have allowed use of large-bore bearings, which provide an increased range of motion with enhanced stability and very low wear. Minimally invasive surgery limits soft-tissue damage and facilitates accelerated discharge and rehabilitation. Short-term objectives must not compromise long-term performance. Computer-assisted surgery will contribute to reproducible and accurate placement of implants. Universal economic constraints in healthcare services dictate that further developments in total hip replacement will be governed by their cost-effectiveness.

Economic Analysis for an F-22 Organic vs. Contractor Aircraft Battle Damage Repair Ownership Decision

DTIC Science & Technology

1997-09-01

cost . That is, a change in the cost driver will cause a change in the total cost of a related cost object. ( Horngren , et al., 1994) Cost Object...Anything for which a separate measurement of costs is desired. ( Horngren , et al., 1994) 48 Fixed Cost Cost that does not change in total despite changes...in a cost driver. ( Horngren , et al., 1994) Incremental Cost The difference in total cost between two alternatives. Also called

Algorithm For Optimal Control Of Large Structures

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Salama, Moktar A.; Garba, John A..; Utku, Senol

1989-01-01

Cost of computation appears competitive with other methods. Problem to compute optimal control of forced response of structure with n degrees of freedom identified in terms of smaller number, r, of vibrational modes. Article begins with Hamilton-Jacobi formulation of mechanics and use of quadratic cost functional. Complexity reduced by alternative approach in which quadratic cost functional expressed in terms of control variables only. Leads to iterative solution of second-order time-integral matrix Volterra equation of second kind containing optimal control vector. Cost of algorithm, measured in terms of number of computations required, is of order of, or less than, cost of prior algoritms applied to similar problems.

Performance limits and trade-offs in entropy-driven biochemical computers.

PubMed

Chu, Dominique

2018-04-14

It is now widely accepted that biochemical reaction networks can perform computations. Examples are kinetic proof reading, gene regulation, or signalling networks. For many of these systems it was found that their computational performance is limited by a trade-off between the metabolic cost, the speed and the accuracy of the computation. In order to gain insight into the origins of these trade-offs, we consider entropy-driven computers as a model of biochemical computation. Using tools from stochastic thermodynamics, we show that entropy-driven computation is subject to a trade-off between accuracy and metabolic cost, but does not involve time-trade-offs. Time trade-offs appear when it is taken into account that the result of the computation needs to be measured in order to be known. We argue that this measurement process, although usually ignored, is a major contributor to the cost of biochemical computation. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Upon accounting for the impact of isoenzyme loss, gene deletion costs anticorrelate with their evolutionary rates

DOE PAGES

Jacobs, Christopher; Lambourne, Luke; Xia, Yu; ...

2017-01-20

Here, system-level metabolic network models enable the computation of growth and metabolic phenotypes from an organism's genome. In particular, flux balance approaches have been used to estimate the contribution of individual metabolic genes to organismal fitness, offering the opportunity to test whether such contributions carry information about the evolutionary pressure on the corresponding genes. Previous failure to identify the expected negative correlation between such computed gene-loss cost and sequence-derived evolutionary rates in Saccharomyces cerevisiae has been ascribed to a real biological gap between a gene's fitness contribution to an organism "here and now"º and the same gene's historical importance asmore » evidenced by its accumulated mutations over millions of years of evolution. Here we show that this negative correlation does exist, and can be exposed by revisiting a broadly employed assumption of flux balance models. In particular, we introduce a new metric that we call "function-loss cost", which estimates the cost of a gene loss event as the total potential functional impairment caused by that loss. This new metric displays significant negative correlation with evolutionary rate, across several thousand minimal environments. We demonstrate that the improvement gained using function-loss cost over gene-loss cost is explained by replacing the base assumption that isoenzymes provide unlimited capacity for backup with the assumption that isoenzymes are completely non-redundant. We further show that this change of the assumption regarding isoenzymes increases the recall of epistatic interactions predicted by the flux balance model at the cost of a reduction in the precision of the predictions. In addition to suggesting that the gene-to-reaction mapping in genome-scale flux balance models should be used with caution, our analysis provides new evidence that evolutionary gene importance captures much more than strict essentiality.« less

Upon accounting for the impact of isoenzyme loss, gene deletion costs anticorrelate with their evolutionary rates

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

Jacobs, Christopher; Lambourne, Luke; Xia, Yu

Here, system-level metabolic network models enable the computation of growth and metabolic phenotypes from an organism's genome. In particular, flux balance approaches have been used to estimate the contribution of individual metabolic genes to organismal fitness, offering the opportunity to test whether such contributions carry information about the evolutionary pressure on the corresponding genes. Previous failure to identify the expected negative correlation between such computed gene-loss cost and sequence-derived evolutionary rates in Saccharomyces cerevisiae has been ascribed to a real biological gap between a gene's fitness contribution to an organism "here and now"º and the same gene's historical importance asmore » evidenced by its accumulated mutations over millions of years of evolution. Here we show that this negative correlation does exist, and can be exposed by revisiting a broadly employed assumption of flux balance models. In particular, we introduce a new metric that we call "function-loss cost", which estimates the cost of a gene loss event as the total potential functional impairment caused by that loss. This new metric displays significant negative correlation with evolutionary rate, across several thousand minimal environments. We demonstrate that the improvement gained using function-loss cost over gene-loss cost is explained by replacing the base assumption that isoenzymes provide unlimited capacity for backup with the assumption that isoenzymes are completely non-redundant. We further show that this change of the assumption regarding isoenzymes increases the recall of epistatic interactions predicted by the flux balance model at the cost of a reduction in the precision of the predictions. In addition to suggesting that the gene-to-reaction mapping in genome-scale flux balance models should be used with caution, our analysis provides new evidence that evolutionary gene importance captures much more than strict essentiality.« less

Bio and health informatics meets cloud : BioVLab as an example.

PubMed

Chae, Heejoon; Jung, Inuk; Lee, Hyungro; Marru, Suresh; Lee, Seong-Whan; Kim, Sun

2013-01-01

The exponential increase of genomic data brought by the advent of the next or the third generation sequencing (NGS) technologies and the dramatic drop in sequencing cost have driven biological and medical sciences to data-driven sciences. This revolutionary paradigm shift comes with challenges in terms of data transfer, storage, computation, and analysis of big bio/medical data. Cloud computing is a service model sharing a pool of configurable resources, which is a suitable workbench to address these challenges. From the medical or biological perspective, providing computing power and storage is the most attractive feature of cloud computing in handling the ever increasing biological data. As data increases in size, many research organizations start to experience the lack of computing power, which becomes a major hurdle in achieving research goals. In this paper, we review the features of publically available bio and health cloud systems in terms of graphical user interface, external data integration, security and extensibility of features. We then discuss about issues and limitations of current cloud systems and conclude with suggestion of a biological cloud environment concept, which can be defined as a total workbench environment assembling computational tools and databases for analyzing bio/medical big data in particular application domains.

Cost-effectiveness of home versus clinic-based management of chronic heart failure: Extended follow-up of a pragmatic, multicentre randomized trial cohort - The WHICH? study (Which Heart Failure Intervention Is Most Cost-Effective & Consumer Friendly in Reducing Hospital Care).

PubMed

Maru, Shoko; Byrnes, Joshua; Carrington, Melinda J; Chan, Yih-Kai; Thompson, David R; Stewart, Simon; Scuffham, Paul A

2015-12-15

To assess the long-term cost-effectiveness of two multidisciplinary management programs for elderly patients hospitalized with chronic heart failure (CHF) and how it is influenced by patient characteristics. A trial-based analysis was conducted alongside a randomized controlled trial of 280 elderly patients with CHF discharged to home from three Australian tertiary hospitals. Two interventions were compared: home-based intervention (HBI) that involved home visiting with community-based care versus specialized clinic-based intervention (CBI). Bootstrapped incremental cost-utility ratios were computed based on quality-adjusted life-years (QALYs) and total healthcare costs. Cost-effectiveness acceptability curves were constructed based on incremental net monetary benefit (NMB). We performed multiple linear regression to explore which patient characteristics may impact patient-level NMB. During median follow-up of 3.2 years, HBI was associated with slightly higher QALYs (+0.26 years per person; p=0.078) and lower total healthcare costs (AU$ -13,100 per person; p=0.025) mainly driven by significantly reduced duration of all-cause hospital stay (-10 days; p=0.006). At a willingness-to-pay threshold of AU$ 50,000 per additional QALY, the probability of HBI being better-valued was 96% and the incremental NMB of HBI was AU$ 24,342 (discounted, 5%). The variables associated with increased NMB were HBI (vs. CBI), lower Charlson Comorbidity Index, no hyponatremia, fewer months of HF, fewer prior HF admissions <1 year and a higher patient's self-care confidence. HBI's net benefit further increased in those with fewer comorbidities, a lower self-care confidence or no hyponatremia. Compared with CBI, HBI is likely to be cost-effective in elderly CHF patients with significant comorbidity. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

The socioeconomic costs of mental illness in Spain.

PubMed

Oliva-Moreno, Juan; López-Bastida, Julio; Montejo-González, Angel Luis; Osuna-Guerrero, Rubén; Duque-González, Beatriz

2009-10-01

Mental illness affects a large number of people in the world, seriously impairing their quality of life and resulting in high socioeconomic costs for health care systems and society. Our aim is to estimate the socioeconomic impact of mental illness in Spain for the year 2002, including health care resources, informal care and loss of labour productivity. A prevalence-based approach was used to estimate direct medical costs, direct non-medical costs, and loss of labour productivity. The total costs of mental illness have been estimated at 7,019 million euros. Direct medical costs represented 39.6% of the total costs and 7.3% of total public healthcare expenditure in Spain. Informal care costs represented 17.7% of the total costs. Loss of labour productivity accounted for 42.7% of total costs. In conclusion, the costs of mental illness in Spain make a considerable economic impact from a societal perspective.

Cost of work-related injuries in insured workplaces in Lebanon.

PubMed Central

Fayad, Rim; Nuwayhid, Iman; Tamim, Hala; Kassak, Kassem; Khogali, Mustafa

2003-01-01

OBJECTIVE: To estimate the medical and compensation costs of work-related injuries in insured workplaces in Lebanon and to examine cost distributions by worker and injury characteristics. METHODS: A total of 3748 claims for work injuries processed in 1998 by five major insurance companies in Lebanon were reviewed. Medical costs (related to emergency room fees, physician consultations, tests, and medications) and wage and indemnity compensation costs were identified from the claims. FINDINGS: The median cost per injury was US dollars 83 (mean, US dollars 198; range, US dollars 0-16,401). The overall cost for all 3748 injuries was US dollars 742,100 (76% of this was medical costs). Extrapolated to all injuries within insured workplaces, the overall cost was US dollars 4.5 million a year; this increased to US dollars 10 million-13 million when human value cost (pain and suffering) was accounted for. Fatal injuries (three, 0.1%) and those that caused permanent disabilities (nine, 0.2%) accounted for 10.4% of the overall costs and hospitalized injuries (245, 6.5%) for 45%. Cost per injury was highest among older workers and for injuries that involved falls and vehicle incidents. Medical, but not compensation, costs were higher among female workers. CONCLUSION: The computed costs of work injuries--a fraction of the real burden of occupational injuries in Lebanon--represent a considerable economic loss. This calls for a national policy to prevent work injuries, with a focus on preventing the most serious injuries. Options for intervention and research are discussed. PMID:12973643

A non-stationary cost-benefit analysis approach for extreme flood estimation to explore the nexus of 'Risk, Cost and Non-stationarity'

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Qi, Wei

2017-11-01

Cost-benefit analysis is commonly used for engineering planning and design problems in practice. However, previous cost-benefit based design flood estimation is based on stationary assumption. This study develops a non-stationary cost-benefit based design flood estimation approach. This approach integrates a non-stationary probability distribution function into cost-benefit analysis, and influence of non-stationarity on expected total cost (including flood damage and construction costs) and design flood estimation can be quantified. To facilitate design flood selections, a 'Risk-Cost' analysis approach is developed, which reveals the nexus of extreme flood risk, expected total cost and design life periods. Two basins, with 54-year and 104-year flood data respectively, are utilized to illustrate the application. It is found that the developed approach can effectively reveal changes of expected total cost and extreme floods in different design life periods. In addition, trade-offs are found between extreme flood risk and expected total cost, which reflect increases in cost to mitigate risk. Comparing with stationary approaches which generate only one expected total cost curve and therefore only one design flood estimation, the proposed new approach generate design flood estimation intervals and the 'Risk-Cost' approach selects a design flood value from the intervals based on the trade-offs between extreme flood risk and expected total cost. This study provides a new approach towards a better understanding of the influence of non-stationarity on expected total cost and design floods, and could be beneficial to cost-benefit based non-stationary design flood estimation across the world.

Low-Cost Computer-Aided Instruction/Computer-Managed Instruction (CAI/CMI) System: Feasibility Study. Final Report.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lintz, Larry M.; And Others

This study investigated the feasibility of a low cost computer-aided instruction/computer-managed instruction (CAI/CMI) system. Air Force instructors and training supervisors were surveyed to determine the potential payoffs of various CAI and CMI functions. Results indicated that a wide range of capabilities had potential for resident technical…

The total cost of EHR ownership.

PubMed

Eastaugh, Steven R

2013-02-01

Consider total cost of ownership, not just initial cost of acquisition and annual maintenance, when reviewing electronic health record (EHR) system bids. Support costs--a key part of total cost of ownership--include FTEs dedicated to the system. The long-term costs of an EHR system can vary dramatically (up to 200 percent) depending on which system is selected.

An Inviscid Decoupled Method for the Roe FDS Scheme in the Reacting Gas Path of FUN3D

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Thompson, Kyle B.; Gnoffo, Peter A.

2016-01-01

An approach is described to decouple the species continuity equations from the mixture continuity, momentum, and total energy equations for the Roe flux difference splitting scheme. This decoupling simplifies the implicit system, so that the flow solver can be made significantly more efficient, with very little penalty on overall scheme robustness. Most importantly, the computational cost of the point implicit relaxation is shown to scale linearly with the number of species for the decoupled system, whereas the fully coupled approach scales quadratically. Also, the decoupled method significantly reduces the cost in wall time and memory in comparison to the fully coupled approach. This work lays the foundation for development of an efficient adjoint solution procedure for high speed reacting flow.

On the design of a radix-10 online floating-point multiplier

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

McIlhenny, Robert D.; Ercegovac, Milos D.

2009-08-01

This paper describes an approach to design and implement a radix-10 online floating-point multiplier. An online approach is considered because it offers computational flexibility not available with conventional arithmetic. The design was coded in VHDL and compiled, synthesized, and mapped onto a Virtex 5 FPGA to measure cost in terms of LUTs (look-up-tables) as well as the cycle time and total latency. The routing delay which was not optimized is the major component in the cycle time. For a rough estimate of the cost/latency characteristics, our design was compared to a standard radix-2 floating-point multiplier of equivalent precision. The results demonstrate that even an unoptimized radix-10 online design is an attractive implementation alternative for FPGA floating-point multiplication.

Harmony search optimization algorithm for a novel transportation problem in a consolidation network

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Davod Hosseini, Seyed; Akbarpour Shirazi, Mohsen; Taghi Fatemi Ghomi, Seyed Mohammad

2014-11-01

This article presents a new harmony search optimization algorithm to solve a novel integer programming model developed for a consolidation network. In this network, a set of vehicles is used to transport goods from suppliers to their corresponding customers via two transportation systems: direct shipment and milk run logistics. The objective of this problem is to minimize the total shipping cost in the network, so it tries to reduce the number of required vehicles using an efficient vehicle routing strategy in the solution approach. Solving several numerical examples confirms that the proposed solution approach based on the harmony search algorithm performs much better than CPLEX in reducing both the shipping cost in the network and computational time requirement, especially for realistic size problem instances.

Computer programs for estimating civil aircraft economics

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Maddalon, D. V.; Molloy, J. K.; Neubawer, M. J.

1980-01-01

Computer programs for calculating airline direct operating cost, indirect operating cost, and return on investment were developed to provide a means for determining commercial aircraft life cycle cost and economic performance. A representative wide body subsonic jet aircraft was evaluated to illustrate use of the programs.

Feasibility of a peat biogasification process

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Buivid, M. G.; Wise, D. L.; Rader, A. M.; McCarty, P. L.; Owen, W. F.

1980-07-01

The feasibility of a two-stage biogasification process for the conversion of peat reserves, the energy content of which in the United States is greater than that of uranium, shale oil or petroleum and natural gas combined, into pipeline-quality methane is investigated. Samples of wet-harvested reed-sedge peat were pretreated in alkaline and nonalkaline conditions in the presence and absence of oxidation in order to determine the most favorable conditions for the conversion of cellulosic and lignaceous fractions to water-soluble, fermentable compounds, and the resulting products were subjected to anaerobic fermentation to methane. Conversion efficiencies obtained reveal that up to 26% of the initial heat content of peat was converted to methane when alkaline heat pretreatment was employed. Analysis of the process parameters by a computer model to determine equipment sizes, mass and energy balances and costs indicates that for a 79,200 GJ/day plant the total capital requirement would be $323,000,000, annual operating costs would be $44,000,000 and average SNG cost would be $3.16/GJ, assuming a 90% stream factor with a delivered peat slurry costing $0.0033/kg.

10 CFR Appendix I to Part 504 - Procedures for the Computation of the Real Cost of Capital

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... 10 Energy 4 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Procedures for the Computation of the Real Cost of Capital I Appendix I to Part 504 Energy DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY (CONTINUED) ALTERNATE FUELS EXISTING POWERPLANTS Pt. 504, App. I Appendix I to Part 504—Procedures for the Computation of the Real Cost of Capital (a) The firm's real after-tax weighted average...

Optimal routing for efficient municipal solid waste transportation by using ArcGIS application in Chennai, India.

PubMed

Sanjeevi, V; Shahabudeen, P

2016-01-01

Worldwide, about US$410 billion is spent every year to manage four billion tonnes of municipal solid wastes (MSW). Transport cost alone constitutes more than 50% of the total expenditure on solid waste management (SWM) in major cities of the developed world and the collection and transport cost is about 85% in the developing world. There is a need to improve the ability of the city administrators to manage the municipal solid wastes with least cost. Since 2000, new technologies such as geographical information system (GIS) and related optimization software have been used to optimize the haul route distances. The city limits of Chennai were extended from 175 to 426 km(2) in 2011, leading to sub-optimum levels in solid waste transportation of 4840 tonnes per day. After developing a spatial database for the whole of Chennai with 200 wards, the route optimization procedures have been run for the transport of solid wastes from 13 wards (generating nodes) to one transfer station (intermediary before landfill), using ArcGIS. The optimization process reduced the distances travelled by 9.93%. The annual total cost incurred for this segment alone is Indian Rupees (INR) 226.1 million. Savings in terms of time taken for both the current and shortest paths have also been computed, considering traffic conditions. The overall savings are thus very meaningful and call for optimization of the haul routes for the entire Chennai. © The Author(s) 2015.

Grid connected integrated community energy system. Phase II: final state 2 report. Cost benefit analysis, operating costs and computer simulation

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

Not Available

1978-03-22

A grid-connected Integrated Community Energy System (ICES) with a coal-burning power plant located on the University of Minnesota campus is planned. The cost benefit analysis performed for this ICES, the cost accounting methods used, and a computer simulation of the operation of the power plant are described. (LCL)

The economic cost of road traffic crashes in an urban setting

PubMed Central

García‐Altés, A; Pérez, K

2007-01-01

The objective of this article is to assess the total economic costs of road traffic crashes in Barcelona, a metropolitan city located in Southern Europe. A cost‐of‐illness study was conducted using a prevalence approximation, a societal and healthcare system perspective, and a 1‐year time horizon. Results were measured in terms of Euros in 2003. Total costs of road traffic crashes in Barcelona in 2003 were €367 million. Direct costs equalled €329 million (89.8% of total costs), including property damage costs, insurance administration costs and hospital costs. Police, emergency costs and transportation costs had a minimum effect on total direct costs. Indirect costs were €37 million, including lost productivity due to hospitalization and mortality. The results of the sensitivity analysis showed the upper limit of total economic cost of road traffic crashes in Barcelona to be €782 million. This is the first study to estimate the costs of road traffic crashes for a city in a developed country. The importance of the problem calls for further interventions to reduce road traffic crashes. PMID:17296693

A Cost-Benefit Study of Doing Astrophysics On The Cloud: Production of Image Mosaics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Berriman, G. B.; Good, J. C. Deelman, E.; Singh, G. Livny, M.

2009-09-01

Utility grids such as the Amazon EC2 and Amazon S3 clouds offer computational and storage resources that can be used on-demand for a fee by compute- and data-intensive applications. The cost of running an application on such a cloud depends on the compute, storage and communication resources it will provision and consume. Different execution plans of the same application may result in significantly different costs. We studied via simulation the cost performance trade-offs of different execution and resource provisioning plans by creating, under the Amazon cloud fee structure, mosaics with the Montage image mosaic engine, a widely used data- and compute-intensive application. Specifically, we studied the cost of building mosaics of 2MASS data that have sizes of 1, 2 and 4 square degrees, and a 2MASS all-sky mosaic. These are examples of mosaics commonly generated by astronomers. We also study these trade-offs in the context of the storage and communication fees of Amazon S3 when used for long-term application data archiving. Our results show that by provisioning the right amount of storage and compute resources cost can be significantly reduced with no significant impact on application performance.

The Cost of Joint Replacement: Comparing Two Approaches to Evaluating Costs of Total Hip and Knee Arthroplasty.

PubMed

Palsis, John A; Brehmer, Thomas S; Pellegrini, Vincent D; Drew, Jacob M; Sachs, Barton L

2018-02-21

In an era of mandatory bundled payments for total joint replacement, accurate analysis of the cost of procedures is essential for orthopaedic surgeons and their institutions to maintain viable practices. The purpose of this study was to compare traditional accounting and time-driven activity-based costing (TDABC) methods for estimating the total costs of total hip and knee arthroplasty care cycles. We calculated the overall costs of elective primary total hip and total knee replacement care cycles at our academic medical center using traditional and TDABC accounting methods. We compared the methods with respect to the overall costs of hip and knee replacement and the costs for each major cost category. The traditional accounting method resulted in higher cost estimates. The total cost per hip replacement was $22,076 (2014 USD) using traditional accounting and was $12,957 using TDABC. The total cost per knee replacement was $29,488 using traditional accounting and was $16,981 using TDABC. With respect to cost categories, estimates using traditional accounting were greater for hip and knee replacement, respectively, by $3,432 and $5,486 for personnel, by $3,398 and $3,664 for space and equipment, and by $2,289 and $3,357 for indirect costs. Implants and consumables were derived from the actual hospital purchase price; accordingly, both methods produced equivalent results. Substantial cost differences exist between accounting methods. The focus of TDABC only on resources used directly by the patient contrasts with the allocation of all operating costs, including all indirect costs and unused capacity, with traditional accounting. We expect that the true costs of hip and knee replacement care cycles are likely somewhere between estimates derived from traditional accounting methods and TDABC. TDABC offers patient-level granular cost information that better serves in the redesign of care pathways and may lead to more strategic resource-allocation decisions to optimize actual operating margins.

Management of End-Stage Ankle Arthritis: Cost-Utility Analysis Using Direct and Indirect Costs.

PubMed

Nwachukwu, Benedict U; McLawhorn, Alexander S; Simon, Matthew S; Hamid, Kamran S; Demetracopoulos, Constantine A; Deland, Jonathan T; Ellis, Scott J

2015-07-15

Total ankle replacement and ankle fusion are costly but clinically effective treatments for ankle arthritis. Prior cost-effectiveness analyses for the management of ankle arthritis have been limited by a lack of consideration of indirect costs and nonoperative management. The purpose of this study was to compare the cost-effectiveness of operative and nonoperative treatments for ankle arthritis with inclusion of direct and indirect costs in the analysis. Markov model analysis was conducted from a health-systems perspective with use of direct costs and from a societal perspective with use of direct and indirect costs. Costs were derived from the 2012 Nationwide Inpatient Sample (NIS) and expressed in 2013 U.S. dollars; effectiveness was expressed in quality-adjusted life years (QALYs). Model transition probabilities were derived from the available literature. The principal outcome measure was the incremental cost-effectiveness ratio (ICER). In the direct-cost analysis for the base case, total ankle replacement was associated with an ICER of $14,500/QALY compared with nonoperative management. When indirect costs were included, total ankle replacement was both more effective and resulted in $5900 and $800 in lifetime cost savings compared with the lifetime costs following nonoperative management and ankle fusion, respectively. At a $100,000/QALY threshold, surgical management of ankle arthritis was preferred for patients younger than ninety-six years and total ankle replacement was increasingly more cost-effective in younger patients. Total ankle replacement, ankle fusion, and nonoperative management were the preferred strategy in 83%, 12%, and 5% of the analyses, respectively; however, our model was sensitive to patient age, the direct costs of total ankle replacement, the failure rate of total ankle replacement, and the probability of arthritis after ankle fusion. Compared with nonoperative treatment for the management of end-stage ankle arthritis, total ankle replacement is preferred over ankle fusion; total ankle replacement is cost-saving when indirect costs are considered and demonstrates increasing cost-effectiveness in younger patients. As indications for and utilization of total ankle replacement increase, continued research is needed to define appropriate subgroups of patients who would likely derive the greatest clinical benefit from that procedure. Economic and decision analysis Level II. See Instructions for Authors for a complete description of levels of evidence. Copyright © 2015 by The Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery, Incorporated.

Systems cost/performance analysis (study 2.3). Volume 3: Programmer's manual and user's guide. [for unmanned spacecraft

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Janz, R. F.

1974-01-01

The systems cost/performance model was implemented as a digital computer program to perform initial program planning, cost/performance tradeoffs, and sensitivity analyses. The computer is described along with the operating environment in which the program was written and checked, the program specifications such as discussions of logic and computational flow, the different subsystem models involved in the design of the spacecraft, and routines involved in the nondesign area such as costing and scheduling of the design. Preliminary results for the DSCS-II design are also included.

Cost Optimization Model for Business Applications in Virtualized Grid Environments

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Strebel, Jörg

The advent of Grid computing gives enterprises an ever increasing choice of computing options, yet research has so far hardly addressed the problem of mixing the different computing options in a cost-minimal fashion. The following paper presents a comprehensive cost model and a mixed integer optimization model which can be used to minimize the IT expenditures of an enterprise and help in decision-making when to outsource certain business software applications. A sample scenario is analyzed and promising cost savings are demonstrated. Possible applications of the model to future research questions are outlined.

Constrained Total Generalized p-Variation Minimization for Few-View X-Ray Computed Tomography Image Reconstruction

PubMed Central

Zhang, Hanming; Wang, Linyuan; Yan, Bin; Li, Lei; Cai, Ailong; Hu, Guoen

2016-01-01

Total generalized variation (TGV)-based computed tomography (CT) image reconstruction, which utilizes high-order image derivatives, is superior to total variation-based methods in terms of the preservation of edge information and the suppression of unfavorable staircase effects. However, conventional TGV regularization employs l1-based form, which is not the most direct method for maximizing sparsity prior. In this study, we propose a total generalized p-variation (TGpV) regularization model to improve the sparsity exploitation of TGV and offer efficient solutions to few-view CT image reconstruction problems. To solve the nonconvex optimization problem of the TGpV minimization model, we then present an efficient iterative algorithm based on the alternating minimization of augmented Lagrangian function. All of the resulting subproblems decoupled by variable splitting admit explicit solutions by applying alternating minimization method and generalized p-shrinkage mapping. In addition, approximate solutions that can be easily performed and quickly calculated through fast Fourier transform are derived using the proximal point method to reduce the cost of inner subproblems. The accuracy and efficiency of the simulated and real data are qualitatively and quantitatively evaluated to validate the efficiency and feasibility of the proposed method. Overall, the proposed method exhibits reasonable performance and outperforms the original TGV-based method when applied to few-view problems. PMID:26901410

Security systems engineering overview

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

Steele, B.J.

Crime prevention is on the minds of most people today. The concern for public safety and the theft of valuable assets are being discussed at all levels of government and throughout the public sector. There is a growing demand for security systems that can adequately safeguard people and valuable assets against the sophistication of those criminals or adversaries who pose a threat. The crime in this country has been estimated at $70 billion in direct costs and up to $300 billion in indirect costs. Health insurance fraud alone is estimated to cost American businesses $100 billion. Theft, warranty fraud, andmore » counterfeiting of computer hardware totaled $3 billion in 1994. A threat analysis is a prerequisite to any security system design to assess the vulnerabilities with respect to the anticipated threat. Having established a comprehensive definition of the threat, crime prevention, detection, and threat assessment technologies can be used to address these criminal activities. This talk will outline the process used to design a security system regardless of the level of security. This methodology has been applied to many applications including: government high security facilities; residential and commercial intrusion detection and assessment; anti-counterfeiting/fraud detection technologies (counterfeit currency, cellular phone billing, credit card fraud, health care fraud, passport, green cards, and questionable documents); industrial espionage detection and prevention (intellectual property, computer chips, etc.); and security barrier technology (creation of delay such as gates, vaults, etc.).« less

Public safety answering point readiness for wireless E-911 in New York State.

PubMed

Bailey, Bob W; Scott, Jay M; Brown, Lawrence H

2003-01-01

To determine the level of wireless enhanced 911 readiness among New York's primary public safety answering points. This descriptive study utilized a simple, single-page survey that was distributed in August 2001, with telephone follow-up concluding in January 2002. Surveys were distributed to directors of the primary public safety answering points in each of New York's 62 counties. Information was requested regarding current readiness for providing wireless enhanced 911 service, hardware and software needs for implementing the service, and the estimated costs for obtaining the necessary hardware and software. Two directors did not respond and could not be contacted by telephone; three declined participation; one did not operate an answering point; and seven provided incomplete responses, resulting in usable data from 49 (79%) of the state's public safety answering points. Only 27% of the responding public safety answering points were currently wireless enhanced 911 ready. Specific needs included obtaining or upgrading computer systems (16%), computer-aided dispatch systems (53%), mapping software (71%), telephone systems (27%), and local exchange carrier trunk lines (42%). The total estimated hardware and software costs for achieving wireless enhanced 911 readiness was between 16 million and 20 million dollars. New York's primary public safety answering points are not currently ready to provide wireless enhanced 911 service, and the cost for achieving readiness could be as high as 20 million dollars.

Impact of Data Assimilation on Cost-Accuracy Tradeoff in Multi-Fidelity Models at the Example of an Infiltration Problem

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sinsbeck, Michael; Tartakovsky, Daniel

2015-04-01

Infiltration into top soil can be described by alternative models with different degrees of fidelity: Richards equation and the Green-Ampt model. These models typically contain uncertain parameters and forcings, rendering predictions of the state variables uncertain as well. Within the probabilistic framework, solutions of these models are given in terms of their probability density functions (PDFs) that, in the presence of data, can be treated as prior distributions. The assimilation of soil moisture data into model predictions, e.g., via a Bayesian updating of solution PDFs, poses a question of model selection: Given a significant difference in computational cost, is a lower-fidelity model preferable to its higher-fidelity counter-part? We investigate this question in the context of heterogeneous porous media, whose hydraulic properties are uncertain. While low-fidelity (reduced-complexity) models introduce a model error, their moderate computational cost makes it possible to generate more realizations, which reduces the (e.g., Monte Carlo) sampling or stochastic error. The ratio between these two errors determines the model with the smallest total error. We found assimilation of measurements of a quantity of interest (the soil moisture content, in our example) to decrease the model error, increasing the probability that the predictive accuracy of a reduced-complexity model does not fall below that of its higher-fidelity counterpart.

Estimating the direct and indirect costs of lung cancer: a prospective analysis in a Greek University Pulmonary Department.

PubMed

Zarogoulidou, Vasiliki; Panagopoulou, Efharis; Papakosta, Despina; Petridis, Dimitris; Porpodis, Konstantinos; Zarogoulidis, Konstantinos; Zarogoulidis, Paul; Arvanitidou, Malamatenia

2015-02-01

Lung cancer (LC) is a disease with high morbidity and mortality while the prevention and treatment constitutes a significant financial burden. This economic burden has an increasing trend, with hospitalization being the highest cost factor in most studies, while the patients' quality of life (QoL) and response to treatment is not proven to be positively affected. To evaluate the direct and indirect cost of managing patients with LC in Greece according to stage and histological type of cancer, total chemotherapy cycles, age, gender, smoking habit, overall survival (OS), treatment outcome (TO) and QoL. One hundred thirteen of 128 consecutive patients met the inclusion criteria and were included in this prospective study. Patient enrolment started in August 2011 and ended in November 2011. The duration of the patient follow up was 32 months after diagnosis until end of registry. Total direct cost included diagnosis and treatment cost. Indirect cost constituted of patient's and family caregivers lost days of productivity. QoL was assessed with EORTC-QLQ-30 and Lung Cancer Symptom Scale (LCSS) questionnaires before treatment and every three months. Total direct cost was €1,853,984 and chemotherapy drugs was the highest cost factor (€1,216,421). Total indirect cost was 28,774 days of which 27,293 were related to patients. Total direct cost was significantly related to the increased number of total chemotherapy cycles, longer OS, histological type of adenocarcinoma, female gender and younger patients. No relation was found between total indirect cost and the above factors. When the association between total direct/indirect cost and QoL was examined no significant results were drawn. The burden of LC on health care systems remains very high and was associated with the increased number of total chemotherapy cycles, longer OS, adenocarcinoma histological type of cancer, female gender and younger patients. Chemotherapy drugs constituted the higher factor of total direct cost. Indirect cost was considerably higher for patients than family caregivers and did not significantly differ in relation to the above factors. No significant conclusion was drawn regarding QoL and total direct/indirect cost.

Physician Impact on the Total Cost of Care

PubMed Central

Taheri, Paul A.; Butz, David; Griffes, Louisa C.; Morlock, David R.; Greenfield, Lazar J.

2000-01-01

Background and Objectives Physicians’ efforts at cost containment focus on decreased resource utilization and reduced length of stay. Although these efforts appear to be appropriate, little data exist to gauge their success. As such, the goal of this study is to determine trauma service cost allocations and how this information can help physicians to contain costs. Materials and Methods The authors analyzed the costs for 696 trauma admissions at a level I trauma center for fiscal year 1997. Data were obtained from the hospital costing system. Costs analyzed were variable direct, fixed direct, and Indirect costs. Together, the fixed and indirect costs are referred to as “hospital overhead.” Total Cost equals variable direct plus fixed direct plus indirect costs. Results The mean variable, fixed, and indirect costs per patient were $7,998, $3,534, and $11,086, respectively. Mean total cost per patient was $22,618. Conclusion The 35% variable direct cost represents the percentage of total cost that is typically under the immediate influence of physicians, in contrast to the 65% of total cost over which physicians have little control. Physicians must gain a better understanding of cost drivers and must participate in the operations and allocations of institutional fixed direct and indirect costs if the overall cost of care is to be reduced. PMID:10714637

Hospital costs associated with laparoscopic and open inguinal herniorrhaphy.

PubMed

Spencer Netto, Fernando; Quereshy, Fayez; Camilotti, Bruna G; Pitzul, Kristen; Kwong, Josephine; Jackson, Timothy; Penner, Todd; Okrainec, Allan

2014-01-01

The purpose of this study was to compare the total hospital costs associated with elective laparoscopic and open inguinal herniorrhaphy. A prospectively maintained database was used to identify patients who underwent elective inguinal herniorrhaphy from April 2009 to March 2011. A retrospective review of electronic patient records was performed along with a standardized case-costing analysis using data from the Ontario Case Costing Initiative. The main outcomes were operating room (OR) and total hospital costs. Two hundred eleven patients underwent elective unilateral inguinal herniorrhaphy (117 open and 94 laparoscopic), and 33 patients underwent elective bilateral inguinal herniorrhaphy (9 open and 24 laparoscopic). OR and total hospital costs for open unilateral inguinal hernia repair were significantly lower than for the laparoscopic approach (median total cost, $3207.15 vs $3723.66; P < .001). OR and total hospital costs for repair of elective bilateral inguinal hernias were similar between the open and laparoscopic approaches (median total cost, $4574.02 vs $4662.89; P = .827). In the setting of a Canadian academic hospital, when considering the repair of an elective unilateral inguinal hernia, the OR and total hospital costs of open surgery were significantly lower than for the laparoscopic techniques. There was no statistical difference between OR and total hospital costs when comparing open surgery and laparoscopic techniques for the repair of bilateral inguinal hernias. Given the perioperative benefits of laparoscopy, further studies incorporating hernia-specific outcomes are necessary to determine the cost-effectiveness of each approach and to define the optimal treatment strategy.

75 FR 75393 - Schools and Libraries Universal Service Support Mechanism and A National Broadband Plan for Our...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2010-12-03

... anchors, both as centers for digital literacy and as hubs for access to public computers. While their... expansion of computer labs, and facilitated deployment of new educational applications that would not have... computer fees to help defray the cost of computers or training fees to help cover the cost of training...

[Cost analysis of intraoperative neurophysiological monitoring (IOM)].

PubMed

Kombos, T; Suess, O; Brock, M

2002-01-01

A number of studies demonstrate that a significant reduction of postoperative neurological deficits can be achieved by applying intraoperative neurophysiological monitoring (IOM) methods. A cost analysis of IOM is imperative considering the strained financial situation in the public health services. The calculation model presented here comprises two cost components: material and personnel. The material costs comprise consumer goods and depreciation of capital goods. The computation base was 200 IOM cases per year. Consumer goods were calculated for each IOM procedure respectively. The following constellation served as a basis for calculating personnel costs: (a) a medical technician (salary level BAT Vc) for one hour per case; (b) a resident (BAT IIa) for the entire duration of the measurement, and (c) a senior resident (BAT Ia) only for supervision. An IOM device consisting of an 8-channel preamplifier, an electrical and acoustic stimulator and special software costs 66,467 euros on the average. With an annual depreciation of 20%, the costs are 13,293 euros per year. This amounts to 66.46 euros per case for the capital goods. For reusable materials a sum of 0.75 euro; per case was calculated. Disposable materials were calculate for each procedure respectively. Total costs of 228.02 euro; per case were,s a sum of 0.75 euros per case was calculated. Disposable materials were calculate for each procedure respectively. Total costs of 228.02 euros per case were, calculated for surgery on the peripheral nervous system. They amount to 196.40 euros per case for spinal interventions and to 347.63 euros per case for more complex spinal operations. Operations in the cerebellopontine angle and brain stem cost 376.63 euros and 397.33 euros per case respectively. IOM costs amount to 328.03 euros per case for surgical management of an intracranial aneurysm and to 537.15 euros per case for functional interventions. Expenses run up to 833.63 euros per case for operations near the motor cortex and to 117.65 euros per case for intraoperative speech monitoring. Costs for inpatient medical rehabilitation have increased considerably in recent years. In view of the financial situation, it is necessary to reduce postoperative morbidity and the costs it involves. IOM leads to a reduction of morbidity. The costs for IOM calculated here justify its routine application in view of the legal and socioeconomic consequences of surgery-related neurological deficits.

Who pays and who benefits? How different models of shared responsibilities between formal and informal carers influence projections of costs of dementia management

PubMed Central

2011-01-01

Background The few studies that have attempted to estimate the future cost of caring for people with dementia in Australia are typically based on total prevalence and the cost per patient over the average duration of illness. However, costs associated with dementia care also vary according to the length of the disease, severity of symptoms and type of care provided. This study aimed to determine more accurately the future costs of dementia management by taking these factors into consideration. Methods The current study estimated the prevalence of dementia in Australia (2010-2040). Data from a variety of sources was recalculated to distribute this prevalence according to the location (home/institution), care requirements (informal/formal), and dementia severity. The cost of care was attributed to redistributed prevalences and used in prediction of future costs of dementia. Results Our computer modeling indicates that the ratio between the prevalence of people with mild/moderate/severe dementia will change over the three decades from 2010 to 2040 from 50/30/20 to 44/32/24. Taking into account the severity of symptoms, location of care and cost of care per hour, the current study estimates that the informal cost of care in 2010 is AU$3.2 billion and formal care at AU$5.0 billion per annum. By 2040 informal care is estimated to cost AU$11.6 billion and formal care $AU16.7 billion per annum. Interventions to slow disease progression will result in relative savings of 5% (AU$1.5 billion) per annum and interventions to delay disease onset will result in relative savings of 14% (AU$4 billion) of the cost per annum. With no intervention, the projected combined annual cost of formal and informal care for a person with dementia in 2040 will be around AU$38,000 (in 2010 dollars). An intervention to delay progression by 2 years will see this reduced to AU$35,000. Conclusions These findings highlight the need to account for more than total prevalence when estimating the costs of dementia care. While the absolute values of cost of care estimates are subject to the validity and reliability of currently available data, dynamic systems modeling allows for future trends to be estimated. PMID:21988908

Spaceborne Processor Array

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Chow, Edward T.; Schatzel, Donald V.; Whitaker, William D.; Sterling, Thomas

2008-01-01

A Spaceborne Processor Array in Multifunctional Structure (SPAMS) can lower the total mass of the electronic and structural overhead of spacecraft, resulting in reduced launch costs, while increasing the science return through dynamic onboard computing. SPAMS integrates the multifunctional structure (MFS) and the Gilgamesh Memory, Intelligence, and Network Device (MIND) multi-core in-memory computer architecture into a single-system super-architecture. This transforms every inch of a spacecraft into a sharable, interconnected, smart computing element to increase computing performance while simultaneously reducing mass. The MIND in-memory architecture provides a foundation for high-performance, low-power, and fault-tolerant computing. The MIND chip has an internal structure that includes memory, processing, and communication functionality. The Gilgamesh is a scalable system comprising multiple MIND chips interconnected to operate as a single, tightly coupled, parallel computer. The array of MIND components shares a global, virtual name space for program variables and tasks that are allocated at run time to the distributed physical memory and processing resources. Individual processor- memory nodes can be activated or powered down at run time to provide active power management and to configure around faults. A SPAMS system is comprised of a distributed Gilgamesh array built into MFS, interfaces into instrument and communication subsystems, a mass storage interface, and a radiation-hardened flight computer.

A Roadmap and Cost Implications of Establishing Comprehensive Cancer Care Using a Teleradiotherapy Network in a Group of Sub-Saharan African Countries With No Access to Radiation Therapy

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

Datta, Niloy R., E-mail: niloyranjan.datta@ksa.ch; Heuser, Michael; Bodis, Stephan

Purpose: To propose a roadmap and explore the cost implications of establishing a teleradiotherapy network to provide comprehensive cancer care and capacity building in countries without access to radiation therapy. Methods and Materials: Ten low-income sub-Saharan countries with no current radiation therapy facilities were evaluated. A basic/secondary radiation therapy center (SRTC) with 2 teletherapy, 1 brachytherapy, 1 simulator, and a treatment planning facility was envisaged at a cost of 5 million US dollars (USD 5M). This could be networked with 1 to 4 primary radiation therapy centers (PRTC) with 1 teletherapy unit, each costing USD 2M. The numbers of PRTCsmore » and SRTCs for each country were computed on the basis of cancer incidence, assuming that a PRTC and SRTC could respectively treat 450 and 900 patients annually. Results: An estimated 71,215 patients in these countries will need radiation therapy in 2020. Stepwise establishment of a network with 99 PRTCs and 28 SRTCs would result in 155 teletherapy units and 96% access to radiation therapy. A total of 310 radiation oncologists, 155 medical physicists, and 465 radiation therapy technologists would be needed. Capacity building could be undertaken through telementoring by networking to various international institutions and professional societies. Total infrastructure costs would be approximately USD 860.88M, only 0.94% of the average annual gross domestic product of these 10 countries. A total of 1.04 million patients could receive radiation therapy during the 15-year lifespan of a teletherapy unit for an investment of USD 826.69 per patient. For the entire population of 218.32 million, this equates to USD 4.11 per inhabitant. Conclusion: A teleradiotherapy network could be a cost-contained innovative health care strategy to provide effective comprehensive cancer care through resource sharing and capacity building. The network could also be expanded to include other allied specialties. The proposal calls for active coordination between all national and international organizations backed up by strong geopolitical commitment and action from all stakeholders.« less

Minimum-complexity helicopter simulation math model

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Heffley, Robert K.; Mnich, Marc A.

1988-01-01

An example of a minimal complexity simulation helicopter math model is presented. Motivating factors are the computational delays, cost, and inflexibility of the very sophisticated math models now in common use. A helicopter model form is given which addresses each of these factors and provides better engineering understanding of the specific handling qualities features which are apparent to the simulator pilot. The technical approach begins with specification of features which are to be modeled, followed by a build up of individual vehicle components and definition of equations. Model matching and estimation procedures are given which enable the modeling of specific helicopters from basic data sources such as flight manuals. Checkout procedures are given which provide for total model validation. A number of possible model extensions and refinement are discussed. Math model computer programs are defined and listed.

Exact solutions for the collaborative pickup and delivery problem.

PubMed

Gansterer, Margaretha; Hartl, Richard F; Salzmann, Philipp E H

2018-01-01

In this study we investigate the decision problem of a central authority in pickup and delivery carrier collaborations. Customer requests are to be redistributed among participants, such that the total cost is minimized. We formulate the problem as multi-depot traveling salesman problem with pickups and deliveries. We apply three well-established exact solution approaches and compare their performance in terms of computational time. To avoid unrealistic solutions with unevenly distributed workload, we extend the problem by introducing minimum workload constraints. Our computational results show that, while for the original problem Benders decomposition is the method of choice, for the newly formulated problem this method is clearly dominated by the proposed column generation approach. The obtained results can be used as benchmarks for decentralized mechanisms in collaborative pickup and delivery problems.

IUWare and Computing Tools: Indiana University's Approach to Low-Cost Software.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sheehan, Mark C.; Williams, James G.

1987-01-01

Describes strategies for providing low-cost microcomputer-based software for classroom use on college campuses. Highlights include descriptions of the software (IUWare and Computing Tools); computing center support; license policies; documentation; promotion; distribution; staff, faculty, and user training; problems; and future plans. (LRW)

The Next Generation of Personal Computers.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Crecine, John P.

1986-01-01

Discusses factors converging to create high-capacity, low-cost nature of next generation of microcomputers: a coherent vision of what graphics workstation and future computing environment should be like; hardware developments leading to greater storage capacity at lower costs; and development of software and expertise to exploit computing power…

42 CFR 414.1235 - Cost measures.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-10-01

...) Total per capita costs for all attributed beneficiaries with coronary artery disease. (4) Total per capita costs for all attributed beneficiaries with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. (5) Total per capita costs for all attributed beneficiaries with heart failure. (6) Medicare Spending per Beneficiary...

12 CFR 1402.21 - Categories of requesters-fees.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-01-01

... searches made by computer, the Farm Credit System Insurance Corporation will determine the hourly cost of... the cost of search (including the operator time and the cost of operating the computer to process a... 1402.21 Banks and Banking FARM CREDIT SYSTEM INSURANCE CORPORATION RELEASING INFORMATION Fees for...

12 CFR 1402.21 - Categories of requesters-fees.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-01-01

... searches made by computer, the Farm Credit System Insurance Corporation will determine the hourly cost of... the cost of search (including the operator time and the cost of operating the computer to process a... 1402.21 Banks and Banking FARM CREDIT SYSTEM INSURANCE CORPORATION RELEASING INFORMATION Fees for...

12 CFR 1402.21 - Categories of requesters-fees.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-01-01

... searches made by computer, the Farm Credit System Insurance Corporation will determine the hourly cost of... the cost of search (including the operator time and the cost of operating the computer to process a... 1402.21 Banks and Banking FARM CREDIT SYSTEM INSURANCE CORPORATION RELEASING INFORMATION Fees for...

12 CFR 1402.21 - Categories of requesters-fees.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... searches made by computer, the Farm Credit System Insurance Corporation will determine the hourly cost of... the cost of search (including the operator time and the cost of operating the computer to process a... 1402.21 Banks and Banking FARM CREDIT SYSTEM INSURANCE CORPORATION RELEASING INFORMATION Fees for...

12 CFR 1402.21 - Categories of requesters-fees.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-01-01

... searches made by computer, the Farm Credit System Insurance Corporation will determine the hourly cost of... the cost of search (including the operator time and the cost of operating the computer to process a... 1402.21 Banks and Banking FARM CREDIT SYSTEM INSURANCE CORPORATION RELEASING INFORMATION Fees for...

Surgeon and hospital cost variability for septoplasty and inferior turbinate reduction.

PubMed

Thomas, Andrew; Alt, Jeremiah; Gale, Craig; Vijayakumar, Sathya; Padia, Reema; Peters, Matthew; Champagne, Trevor; Meier, Jeremy D

2016-10-01

Septoplasty and turbinate reduction (STR) is a common procedure for which cost reduction efforts may improve value. The purpose of this study was to identify sources of variation in medical facility and surgeon costs associated with STR, and whether these costs correlated with short-term complications. An observational cohort study was performed in a multifacility network using a standardized cost-accounting system to determine costs associated with adult STR from January 1, 2008 to July 31, 2015. A total of 4007 cases, performed at 21 facilities, by 72 different surgeons were included in the study. Total costs, variable costs, operating room (OR) time, and 30-day complications (eg, epistaxis) were compared among surgeons, facilities, and specialties. Total procedure cost: (mean ± standard deviation [SD]) $2503 ± $790 (range, $852 to $10,559). Mean total variable cost: $1147 ± $423 (range, $400 to $5,081). Intersurgeon and interfacility variability was significant for total cost (p < 0.0001) and OR time (p < 0.0001). Intersurgeon OR supply cost variability was also significant (p < 0.0001). Otolaryngologists had less total cost (p < 0.0001), OR time/cost (p < 0.0001), and complications (p = 0.0164), but greater supply cost (p < 0.0001), than other specialties. There is wide variation in cost associated with STR. Significant variance in OR time and supply cost between surgeons suggests these are potential areas for cost reduction. Although no increased 30-day complications were seen with faster and less costly surgeries, further research is needed to evaluate how time and cost relate to quality of care. © 2016 ARS-AAOA, LLC.

Analysis of Anterior Cervical Discectomy and Fusion Healthcare Costs via the Value-Driven Outcomes Tool.

PubMed

Reese, Jared C; Karsy, Michael; Twitchell, Spencer; Bisson, Erica F

2018-04-11

Examining the costs of single- and multilevel anterior cervical discectomy and fusion (ACDF) is important for the identification of cost drivers and potentially reducing patient costs. A novel tool at our institution provides direct costs for the identification of potential drivers. To assess perioperative healthcare costs for patients undergoing an ACDF. Patients who underwent an elective ACDF between July 2011 and January 2017 were identified retrospectively. Factors adding to total cost were placed into subcategories to identify the most significant contributors, and potential drivers of total cost were evaluated using a multivariable linear regression model. A total of 465 patients (mean, age 53 ± 12 yr, 54% male) met the inclusion criteria for this study. The distribution of total cost was broken down into supplies/implants (39%), facility utilization (37%), physician fees (14%), pharmacy (7%), imaging (2%), and laboratory studies (1%). A multivariable linear regression analysis showed that total cost was significantly affected by the number of levels operated on, operating room time, and length of stay. Costs also showed a narrow distribution with few outliers and did not vary significantly over time. These results suggest that facility utilization and supplies/implants are the predominant cost contributors, accounting for 76% of the total cost of ACDF procedures. Efforts at lowering costs within these categories should make the most impact on providing more cost-effective care.

Evaluation of the incremental cost to the National Health Service of prescribing analogue insulin

PubMed Central

Holden, Sarah E; Poole, Chris D; Morgan, Christopher Ll

2011-01-01

Introduction Insulin analogues have become increasingly popular despite their greater cost compared with human insulin. The aim of this study was to calculate the incremental cost to the National Health Service (NHS) of prescribing analogue insulin preparations instead of their human insulin alternatives. Methods Open-source data from the four UK prescription pricing agencies from 2000 to 2009 were analysed. Cost was adjusted for inflation and reported in UK pounds at 2010 prices. Results Over the 10-year period, the NHS spent a total of £2732 million on insulin. The total annual cost increased from £156 million to £359 million, an increase of 130%. The annual cost of analogue insulin increased from £18.2 million (12% of total insulin cost) to £305 million (85% of total insulin cost), whereas the cost of human insulin decreased from £131 million (84% of total insulin cost) to £51 million (14% of total insulin cost). If it is assumed that all patients using insulin analogues could have received human insulin instead, the overall incremental cost of analogue insulin was £625 million. Conclusion Given the high marginal cost of analogue insulin, adherence to prescribing guidelines recommending the preferential use of human insulin would have resulted in considerable financial savings over the period. PMID:22021891

Analysis of electric vehicle's trip cost allowing late arrival

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Leng, Jun-Qiang; Liu, Wei-Yi; Zhao, Lin

2017-05-01

In this paper, we use a car-following model to study each electric vehicle's trip cost and the total trip cost allowing late arrival. The numerical result show that the electricity cost has great effects on each commuter's trip cost and the total trip costs and that these effects are dependent on each commuter's time headway at the origin, but the electricity cost has no prominent impacts on the minimum value of total trip cost under each commuter's different time headway at the origin.

Analysis of electric vehicle's trip cost without late arrival

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Leng, Jun-Qiang; Zhao, Lin

2017-03-01

In this paper, we use a car-following model to study each electric vehicle's trip cost and the corresponding total trip cost without late arrival. The numerical result show that the electricity cost has significant effects on each electric vehicle's trip cost and the corresponding total trip costs and that the effects are dependent on its time headway at the origin, but the electricity cost has no prominent effects on the minimum value of the system's total trip cost.

Rapid prototyping in aortic surgery.

PubMed

Bangeas, Petros; Voulalas, Grigorios; Ktenidis, Kiriakos

2016-04-01

3D printing provides the sequential addition of material layers and, thus, the opportunity to print parts and components made of different materials with variable mechanical and physical properties. It helps us create 3D anatomical models for the better planning of surgical procedures when needed, since it can reveal any complex anatomical feature. Images of abdominal aortic aneurysms received by computed tomographic angiography were converted into 3D images using a Google SketchUp free software and saved in stereolithography format. Using a 3D printer (Makerbot), a model made of polylactic acid material (thermoplastic filament) was printed. A 3D model of an abdominal aorta aneurysm was created in 138 min, while the model was a precise copy of the aorta visualized in the computed tomographic images. The total cost (including the initial cost of the printer) reached 1303.00 euros. 3D imaging and modelling using different materials can be very useful in cases when anatomical difficulties are recognized through the computed tomographic images and a tactile approach is demanded preoperatively. In this way, major complications during abdominal aorta aneurysm management can be predicted and prevented. Furthermore, the model can be used as a mould; the development of new, more biocompatible, less antigenic and individualized can become a challenge in the future. © The Author 2016. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the European Association for Cardio-Thoracic Surgery. All rights reserved.

Scheduling Projects with Multiskill Learning Effect

PubMed Central

2014-01-01

We investigate the project scheduling problem with multiskill learning effect. A new model is proposed to deal with the problem, where both autonomous and induced learning are considered. In order to obtain the optimal solution, a genetic algorithm with specific encoding and decoding schemes is introduced. A numerical example is used to illustrate the proposed model. The computational results show that the learning effect cannot be neglected in project scheduling. By means of determining the level of induced learning, the project manager can balance the project makespan with total cost. PMID:24683355

Automatic Atlas Based Electron Density and Structure Contouring for MRI-based Prostate Radiation Therapy on the Cloud

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dowling, J. A.; Burdett, N.; Greer, P. B.; Sun, J.; Parker, J.; Pichler, P.; Stanwell, P.; Chandra, S.; Rivest-Hénault, D.; Ghose, S.; Salvado, O.; Fripp, J.

2014-03-01

Our group have been developing methods for MRI-alone prostate cancer radiation therapy treatment planning. To assist with clinical validation of the workflow we are investigating a cloud platform solution for research purposes. Benefits of cloud computing can include increased scalability, performance and extensibility while reducing total cost of ownership. In this paper we demonstrate the generation of DICOM-RT directories containing an automatic average atlas based electron density image and fast pelvic organ contouring from whole pelvis MR scans.

Scheduling projects with multiskill learning effect.

PubMed

Zha, Hong; Zhang, Lianying

2014-01-01

We investigate the project scheduling problem with multiskill learning effect. A new model is proposed to deal with the problem, where both autonomous and induced learning are considered. In order to obtain the optimal solution, a genetic algorithm with specific encoding and decoding schemes is introduced. A numerical example is used to illustrate the proposed model. The computational results show that the learning effect cannot be neglected in project scheduling. By means of determining the level of induced learning, the project manager can balance the project makespan with total cost.

Economic benefits of improved insulin stability in insulin pumps.

PubMed

Weiss, Richard C; van Amerongen, Derek; Bazalo, Gary; Aagren, Mark; Bouchard, Jonathan R

2011-05-01

Insulin pump users discard unused medication and infusion sets according to labeling and manufacturer's instructions. The stability labeling for insulin aspart (rDNA origin] (Novolog) was increased from two days to six. The associated savings was modeled from the perspective of a hypothetical one-million member health plan and the total United States population. The discarded insulin volume and the number of infusion sets used under a two-day stability scenario versus six were modeled. A mix of insulin pumps of various reservoir capacities with a range of daily insulin dosages was used. Average daily insulin dose was 65 units ranging from 10 to 150 units. Costs of discarded insulin aspart [rDNA origin] were calculated using WAC (Average Wholesale Price minus 16.67%). The cost of pump supplies was computed for the two-day scenario assuming a complete infusion set change, including reservoirs, every two days. Under the six-day scenario complete infusion sets were discarded every six days while cannulas at the insertion site were changed midway between complete changes. AWP of least expensive supplies was used to compute their costs. For the hypothetical health plan (1,182 pump users) the annual reduction in discarded insulin volume between scenarios was 19.8 million units. The corresponding cost reduction for the plan due to drug and supply savings was $3.4 million. From the U.S. population perspective, savings of over $1 billion were estimated. Using insulin that is stable for six days in pump reservoirs can yield substantial savings to health plans and other payers, including patients.

Hurricane Loss Estimation Models: Opportunities for Improving the State of the Art.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Watson, Charles C., Jr.; Johnson, Mark E.

2004-11-01

The results of hurricane loss models are used regularly for multibillion dollar decisions in the insurance and financial services industries. These models are proprietary, and this “black box” nature hinders analysis. The proprietary models produce a wide range of results, often producing loss costs that differ by a ratio of three to one or more. In a study for the state of North Carolina, 324 combinations of loss models were analyzed, based on a combination of nine wind models, four surface friction models, and nine damage models drawn from the published literature in insurance, engineering, and meteorology. These combinations were tested against reported losses from Hurricanes Hugo and Andrew as reported by a major insurance company, as well as storm total losses for additional storms. Annual loss costs were then computed using these 324 combinations of models for both North Carolina and Florida, and compared with publicly available proprietary model results in Florida. The wide range of resulting loss costs for open, scientifically defensible models that perform well against observed losses mirrors the wide range of loss costs computed by the proprietary models currently in use. This outcome may be discouraging for governmental and corporate decision makers relying on this data for policy and investment guidance (due to the high variability across model results), but it also provides guidance for the efforts of future investigations to improve loss models. Although hurricane loss models are true multidisciplinary efforts, involving meteorology, engineering, statistics, and actuarial sciences, the field of meteorology offers the most promising opportunities for improvement of the state of the art.

Performance and economy of a fault-tolerant multiprocessor

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lala, J. H.; Smith, C. J.

1979-01-01

The FTMP (Fault-Tolerant Multiprocessor) is one of two central aircraft fault-tolerant architectures now in the prototype phase under NASA sponsorship. The intended application of the computer includes such critical real-time tasks as 'fly-by-wire' active control and completely automatic Category III landings of commercial aircraft. The FTMP architecture is briefly described and it is shown that it is a viable solution to the multi-faceted problems of safety, speed, and cost. Three job dispatch strategies are described, and their results with respect to job-starting delay are presented. The first strategy is a simple First-Come-First-Serve (FCFS) job dispatch executive. The other two schedulers are an adaptive FCFS and an interrupt driven scheduler. Three failure modes are discussed, and the FTMP survival probability in the face of random hard failures is evaluated. It is noted that the hourly cost of operating two FTMPs in a transport aircraft can be as little as one-to-two percent of the total flight-hour cost of the aircraft.

Approaches to eliminate waste and reduce cost for recycling glass.

PubMed

Chao, Chien-Wen; Liao, Ching-Jong

2011-12-01

In recent years, the issue of environmental protection has received considerable attention. This paper adds to the literature by investigating a scheduling problem in the manufacturing of a glass recycling factory in Taiwan. The objective is to minimize the sum of the total holding cost and loss cost. We first represent the problem as an integer programming (IP) model, and then develop two heuristics based on the IP model to find near-optimal solutions for the problem. To validate the proposed heuristics, comparisons between optimal solutions from the IP model and solutions from the current method are conducted. The comparisons involve two problem sizes, small and large, where the small problems range from 15 to 45 jobs, and the large problems from 50 to 100 jobs. Finally, a genetic algorithm is applied to evaluate the proposed heuristics. Computational experiments show that the proposed heuristics can find good solutions in a reasonable time for the considered problem. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Impact of New Water Sources on the Overall Water Network: An Optimisation Approach

PubMed Central

Jones, Brian C.; Hove-Musekwa, Senelani D.

2014-01-01

A mathematical programming problem is formulated for a water network with new water sources included. Salinity and water hardness are considered in the model, which is later solved using the Max-Min Ant System (MMAS) to assess the impact of new water sources on the total cost of the existing network. It is efficient to include new water sources if the distances to them are short or if there is a high penalty associated with failure to meet demand. Desalination unit costs also significantly affect the decision whether to install new water sources into the existing network while softening costs are generally negligible in making such decisions. Experimental results show that, in the example considered, it is efficient to reduce number of desalination plants to remain with one central plant. The Max-Min Ant System algorithm seems to be an effective method as shown by least computational time as compared to the commercial solver Cplex. PMID:27382617

Financial risk protection from social health insurance.

PubMed

Barnes, Kayleigh; Mukherji, Arnab; Mullen, Patrick; Sood, Neeraj

2017-09-01

This paper estimates the impact of social health insurance on financial risk by utilizing data from a natural experiment created by the phased roll-out of a social health insurance program for the poor in India. We estimate the distributional impact of insurance on of out-of-pocket costs and incorporate these results with a stylized expected utility model to compute associated welfare effects. We adjust the standard model, accounting for conditions of developing countries by incorporating consumption floors, informal borrowing, and asset selling which allow us to separate the value of financial risk reduction from consumption smoothing and asset protection. Results show that insurance reduces out-of-pocket costs, particularly in higher quantiles of the distribution. We find reductions in the frequency and amount of money borrowed for health reasons. Finally, we find that the value of financial risk reduction outweighs total per household costs of the insurance program by two to five times. Copyright © 2017. Published by Elsevier B.V.

Minimizing coal terminal marine structure costs. A case history: Plaquemines Parish terminal. [Dock and piles design to absorb and distribute impact and longitudinal forces

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

Pardon, D.V.; Faeth, M.T.; Curth, O.

1981-01-01

At International Marine Terminals' Plaquemines Parish Terminal, design optimization was accomplished by optimizing the dock pile bent spacing and designing the superstructure to distribute berthing impact forces and bollard pulls over a large number of pile bents. Also, by resisting all longitudinal forces acting on the dock at a single location near the center of the structure, the number of longitudinal batter piles was minimized and the need for costly expansion joints was eliminated. Computer techniques were utilized to analyze and optimize the design of the new dock. Pile driving procedures were evaluated utilizing a wave equation technique. Tripod dolphinsmore » with a resilient fender system were provided. The resilent fender system, a combination of rubber shear type and wing type fenders, adds only a small percentage to the total cost of the dolphins but greatly increases their energy absorption capability.« less

How are we addressing ligament balance in TKA? A literature review of revision etiology and technological advancement.

PubMed

Smith, Tyler; Elson, Leah; Anderson, Christopher; Leone, William

2016-01-01

Despite technological advances in operative technique and component materials, the total knee arthroplasty (TKA) revision burden, in the United States, has remained static for the past decade. In light of an anticipated exponential increase in annual surgical volume, it is important to thoroughly understand contemporary challenges associated with technologically driven TKA. This descriptive literature review harvested 69 relevant publications to extrapolate patient trends, benefits, costs, and complications associated with computer-assisted surgery, patient specific instrumentation, and intra-operative sensors. Due to additional charges, a steep learning curve, and questionable cost-effectiveness, widespread use of these systems has been limited. Intra-operative sensors are a relatively recent development, and have been shown to improve both soft-tissue balance and overall functional outcomes at a relatively low price and without disrupting operative workflow. The introduction of new technology into the operating suite should be considered carefully, especially with respect to combined clinically efficacy and cost.

Design of a portable artificial heart drive system based on efficiency analysis.

PubMed

Kitamura, T

1986-11-01

This paper discusses a computer simulation of a pneumatic portable piston-type artificial heart drive system with a linear d-c-motor. The purpose of the design is to obtain an artificial heart drive system with high efficiency and small dimensions to enhance portability. The design employs two factors contributing the total efficiency of the drive system. First, the dimensions of the pneumatic actuator were optimized under a cost function of the total efficiency. Second, the motor performance was studied in terms of efficiency. More than 50 percent of the input energy of the actuator with practical loads is consumed in the armature circuit in all linear d-c-motors with brushes. An optimal design is: the piston cross-sectional area of 10.5 cm2 cylinder longitudinal length of 10 cm. The total efficiency could be up to 25 percent by improving the gasket to reduce the frictional force.

Total-body photography in skin cancer screening: the clinical utility of standardized imaging.

PubMed

Rosenberg, Alexandra; Meyerle, Jon H

2017-05-01

Early detection of skin cancer is essential to reducing morbidity and mortality from both melanoma and nonmelanoma skin cancers. Total-body skin examinations (TBSEs) may improve early detection of malignant melanomas (MMs) but are controversial due to the poor quality of data available to establish a mortality benefit from skin cancer screening. Total-body photography (TBP) promises to provide a way forward by lowering the costs of dermatologic screening while simultaneously leveraging technology to increase patient access to dermatologic care. Standardized TBP also offers the ability for dermatologists to work synergistically with modern computer technology involving algorithms capable of analyzing high-quality images to flag concerning lesions that may require closer evaluation. On a population level, inexpensive TBP has the potential to increase access to skin cancer screening and it has several specific applications in a military population. The utility of standardized TBP is reviewed in the context of skin cancer screening and teledermatology.

Estimation of the sensitive volume for gravitational-wave source populations using weighted Monte Carlo integration

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tiwari, Vaibhav

2018-07-01

The population analysis and estimation of merger rates of compact binaries is one of the important topics in gravitational wave astronomy. The primary ingredient in these analyses is the population-averaged sensitive volume. Typically, sensitive volume, of a given search to a given simulated source population, is estimated by drawing signals from the population model and adding them to the detector data as injections. Subsequently injections, which are simulated gravitational waveforms, are searched for by the search pipelines and their signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) is determined. Sensitive volume is estimated, by using Monte-Carlo (MC) integration, from the total number of injections added to the data, the number of injections that cross a chosen threshold on SNR and the astrophysical volume in which the injections are placed. So far, only fixed population models have been used in the estimation of binary black holes (BBH) merger rates. However, as the scope of population analysis broaden in terms of the methodologies and source properties considered, due to an increase in the number of observed gravitational wave (GW) signals, the procedure will need to be repeated multiple times at a large computational cost. In this letter we address the problem by performing a weighted MC integration. We show how a single set of generic injections can be weighted to estimate the sensitive volume for multiple population models; thereby greatly reducing the computational cost. The weights in this MC integral are the ratios of the output probabilities, determined by the population model and standard cosmology, and the injection probability, determined by the distribution function of the generic injections. Unlike analytical/semi-analytical methods, which usually estimate sensitive volume using single detector sensitivity, the method is accurate within statistical errors, comes at no added cost and requires minimal computational resources.

Cost-Effectiveness and Cost-Utility of Internet-Based Computer Tailoring for Smoking Cessation

PubMed Central

Evers, Silvia MAA; de Vries, Hein; Hoving, Ciska

2013-01-01

Background Although effective smoking cessation interventions exist, information is limited about their cost-effectiveness and cost-utility. Objective To assess the cost-effectiveness and cost-utility of an Internet-based multiple computer-tailored smoking cessation program and tailored counseling by practice nurses working in Dutch general practices compared with an Internet-based multiple computer-tailored program only and care as usual. Methods The economic evaluation was embedded in a randomized controlled trial, for which 91 practice nurses recruited 414 eligible smokers. Smokers were randomized to receive multiple tailoring and counseling (n=163), multiple tailoring only (n=132), or usual care (n=119). Self-reported cost and quality of life were assessed during a 12-month follow-up period. Prolonged abstinence and 24-hour and 7-day point prevalence abstinence were assessed at 12-month follow-up. The trial-based economic evaluation was conducted from a societal perspective. Uncertainty was accounted for by bootstrapping (1000 times) and sensitivity analyses. Results No significant differences were found between the intervention arms with regard to baseline characteristics or effects on abstinence, quality of life, and addiction level. However, participants in the multiple tailoring and counseling group reported significantly more annual health care–related costs than participants in the usual care group. Cost-effectiveness analysis, using prolonged abstinence as the outcome measure, showed that the mere multiple computer-tailored program had the highest probability of being cost-effective. Compared with usual care, in this group €5100 had to be paid for each additional abstinent participant. With regard to cost-utility analyses, using quality of life as the outcome measure, usual care was probably most efficient. Conclusions To our knowledge, this was the first study to determine the cost-effectiveness and cost-utility of an Internet-based smoking cessation program with and without counseling by a practice nurse. Although the Internet-based multiple computer-tailored program seemed to be the most cost-effective treatment, the cost-utility was probably highest for care as usual. However, to ease the interpretation of cost-effectiveness results, future research should aim at identifying an acceptable cutoff point for the willingness to pay per abstinent participant. PMID:23491820

Cloud computing for comparative genomics with windows azure platform.

PubMed

Kim, Insik; Jung, Jae-Yoon; Deluca, Todd F; Nelson, Tristan H; Wall, Dennis P

2012-01-01

Cloud computing services have emerged as a cost-effective alternative for cluster systems as the number of genomes and required computation power to analyze them increased in recent years. Here we introduce the Microsoft Azure platform with detailed execution steps and a cost comparison with Amazon Web Services.

Cloud Computing for Comparative Genomics with Windows Azure Platform

PubMed Central

Kim, Insik; Jung, Jae-Yoon; DeLuca, Todd F.; Nelson, Tristan H.; Wall, Dennis P.

2012-01-01

Cloud computing services have emerged as a cost-effective alternative for cluster systems as the number of genomes and required computation power to analyze them increased in recent years. Here we introduce the Microsoft Azure platform with detailed execution steps and a cost comparison with Amazon Web Services. PMID:23032609

Hospital costs fell as numbers of LVADs were increasing: experiences from Oslo University Hospital

PubMed Central

2012-01-01

Background The current study was undertaken to examine total hospital costs per patient of a consecutive implantation series of two 3rd generation Left Ventricle Assist Devices (LVAD). Further we analyzed if increased clinical experience would reduce total hospital costs and the gap between costs and the diagnosis related grouped (DRG)-reimbursement. Method Cost data of 20 LVAD implantations (VentrAssist™) from 2005-2009 (period 1) were analyzed together with costs from nine patients using another LVAD (HeartWare™) from 2009-June 2011 (period 2). For each patient, total costs were calculated for three phases - the pre-LVAD implantation phase, the LVAD implantation phase and the post LVAD implant phase. Patient specific costs were obtained prospectively from patient records and included personnel resources, medication, blood products, blood chemistry and microbiology, imaging and procedure costs including operating room costs. Overhead costs were registered retrospectively and allocated to the specific patient by predefined allocation keys. Finally, patient specific costs and overhead costs were aggregated into total hospital costs for each patient. All costs were calculated in 2011-prices. We used regression analyses to analyze cost variations over time and between the different devices. Results The average total hospital cost per patient for the pre-LVAD, LVAD and post-LVAD for period 1 was $ 585, 513 (range 132, 640- 1 247, 299), and the corresponding DRG- reimbursement (2009) was $ 143, 192 . The mean LOS was 54 days (range 12- 127). For period 2 the total hospital cost per patient was $ 413, 185 (range 314, 540- 622, 664) and the corresponding DRG- reimbursement (2010) was $ 136, 963. The mean LOS was 49 days (range 31- 93). The estimates from the regression analysis showed that the total hospital costs, excluding device costs, per patient were falling as the number of treated patients increased. The estimate from the trend variable was -14, 096 US$ (CI -3, 842 to -24, 349, p < 0.01). Conclusion There were significant reductions in total hospital costs per patient as the numbers of patients were increasing. This can possibly be explained by a learning effect including better logistics, selection and management of patients. PMID:22925716

Interactive computer-based interventions for weight loss or weight maintenance in overweight or obese people

PubMed Central

Wieland, L. Susan; Falzon, Louise; Sciamanna, Chris N; Trudeau, Kimberlee J; Folse, Suzanne Brodney; Schwartz, Joseph E; Davidson, Karina W

2014-01-01

Background The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that the number of obese or overweight individuals worldwide will increase to 1.5 billion by 2015. Chronic diseases associated with overweight or obesity include diabetes, heart disease, hypertension and stroke. Objectives To assess the effects of interactive computer-based interventions for weight loss or weight maintenance in overweight or obese people. Search methods We searched several electronic databases, including CENTRAL, MEDLINE, EMBASE, CINAHL, LILACS and PsycINFO, through 25 May 2011. We also searched clinical trials registries to identify studies. We scanned reference lists of included studies and relevant systematic reviews. Selection criteria Studies were included if they were randomized controlled trials or quasi-randomized controlled trials that evaluated interactive computer-based weight loss or weight maintenance programs in adults with overweight or obesity. We excluded trials if the duration of the intervention was less than four weeks or the loss to follow-up was greater than 20% overall. Data collection and analysis Two authors independently extracted study data and assessed risk of bias. Where interventions, control conditions, outcomes and time frames were similar between studies, we combined study data using meta-analysis. Main results We included 14 weight loss studies with a total of 2537 participants, and four weight maintenance studies with a total of 1603 participants. Treatment duration was between four weeks and 30 months. At six months, computer-based interventions led to greater weight loss than minimal interventions (mean difference (MD) −1.5 kg; 95% confidence interval (CI) −2.1 to −0.9; two trials) but less weight loss than in-person treatment (MD 2.1 kg; 95% CI 0.8 to 3.4; one trial). At six months, computer-based interventions were superior to a minimal control intervention in limiting weight regain (MD −0.7 kg; 95% CI −1.2 to −0.2; two trials), but not superior to infrequent in-person treatment (MD 0.5 kg; 95% −0.5 to 1.6; two trials). We did not observe consistent differences in dietary or physical activity behaviors between intervention and control groups in either weight loss or weight maintenance trials. Three weight loss studies estimated the costs of computer-based interventions compared to usual care, however two of the studies were 11 and 28 years old, and recent advances in technology render these estimates unlikely to be applicable to current or future interventions, while the third study was conducted in active duty military personnel, and it is unclear whether the costs are relevant to other settings. One weight loss study reported the cost-effectiveness ratio for a weekly in-person weight loss intervention relative to a computer-based intervention as USD 7177 (EUR 5678) per life year gained (80% CI USD 3055 to USD 60,291 (EUR 2417 to EUR 47,702)). It is unclear whether this could be extrapolated to other studies. No data were identified on adverse events, morbidity, complications or health-related quality of life. Authors’ conclusions Compared to no intervention or minimal interventions (pamphlets, usual care), interactive computer-based interventions are an effective intervention for weight loss and weight maintenance. Compared to in-person interventions, interactive computer-based interventions result in smaller weight losses and lower levels of weight maintenance. The amount of additional weight loss, however, is relatively small and of brief duration, making the clinical significance of these differences unclear. PMID:22895964

When are solar refrigerators less costly than on-grid refrigerators: A simulation modeling study☆

PubMed Central

Haidari, Leila A.; Brown, Shawn T.; Wedlock, Patrick; Connor, Diana L.; Spiker, Marie; Lee, Bruce Y.

2017-01-01

Background Gavi recommends solar refrigerators for vaccine storage in areas with less than eight hours of electricity per day, and WHO guidelines are more conservative. The question remains: Can solar refrigerators provide value where electrical outages are less frequent? Methods Using a HERMES-generated computational model of the Mozambique routine immunization supply chain, we simulated the use of solar versus electric mains-powered refrigerators (hereafter referred to as “electric refrigerators”) at different locations in the supply chain under various circumstances. Results At their current price premium, the annual cost of each solar refrigerator is 132% more than each electric refrigerator at the district level and 241% more at health facilities. Solar refrigerators provided savings over electric refrigerators when one-day electrical outages occurred more than five times per year at either the district level or the health facilities, even when the electric refrigerator holdover time exceeded the duration of the outage. Two-day outages occurring more than three times per year at the district level or more than twice per year at the health facilities also caused solar refrigerators to be cost saving. Lowering the annual cost of a solar refrigerator to 75% more than an electric refrigerator allowed solar refrigerators to be cost saving at either level when one-day outages occurred more than once per year, or when two-day outages occurred more than once per year at the district level or even once per year at the health facilities. Conclusion Our study supports WHO and Gavi guidelines. In fact, solar refrigerators may provide savings in total cost per dose administered over electrical refrigerators when electrical outages are less frequent. Our study identified the frequency and duration at which electrical outages need to occur for solar refrigerators to provide savings in total cost per dose administered over electric refrigerators at different solar refrigerator prices. PMID:28364935

When are solar refrigerators less costly than on-grid refrigerators: A simulation modeling study.

PubMed

Haidari, Leila A; Brown, Shawn T; Wedlock, Patrick; Connor, Diana L; Spiker, Marie; Lee, Bruce Y

2017-04-19

Gavi recommends solar refrigerators for vaccine storage in areas with less than eight hours of electricity per day, and WHO guidelines are more conservative. The question remains: Can solar refrigerators provide value where electrical outages are less frequent? Using a HERMES-generated computational model of the Mozambique routine immunization supply chain, we simulated the use of solar versus electric mains-powered refrigerators (hereafter referred to as "electric refrigerators") at different locations in the supply chain under various circumstances. At their current price premium, the annual cost of each solar refrigerator is 132% more than each electric refrigerator at the district level and 241% more at health facilities. Solar refrigerators provided savings over electric refrigerators when one-day electrical outages occurred more than five times per year at either the district level or the health facilities, even when the electric refrigerator holdover time exceeded the duration of the outage. Two-day outages occurring more than three times per year at the district level or more than twice per year at the health facilities also caused solar refrigerators to be cost saving. Lowering the annual cost of a solar refrigerator to 75% more than an electric refrigerator allowed solar refrigerators to be cost saving at either level when one-day outages occurred more than once per year, or when two-day outages occurred more than once per year at the district level or even once per year at the health facilities. Our study supports WHO and Gavi guidelines. In fact, solar refrigerators may provide savings in total cost per dose administered over electrical refrigerators when electrical outages are less frequent. Our study identified the frequency and duration at which electrical outages need to occur for solar refrigerators to provide savings in total cost per dose administered over electric refrigerators at different solar refrigerator prices. Copyright © 2017. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

Cost estimators for construction of forest roads in the central Appalachians

Treesearch

Deborah, A. Layton; Chris O. LeDoux; Curt C. Hassler; Curt C. Hassler

1992-01-01

Regression equations were developed for estimating the total cost of road construction in the central Appalachian region. Estimators include methods for predicting total costs for roads constructed using hourly rental methods and roads built on a total-job bid basis. Results show that total-job bid roads cost up to five times as much as roads built than when equipment...

Performance and Cost-Effectiveness of Computed Tomography Lung Cancer Screening Scenarios in a Population-Based Setting: A Microsimulation Modeling Analysis in Ontario, Canada.

PubMed

Ten Haaf, Kevin; Tammemägi, Martin C; Bondy, Susan J; van der Aalst, Carlijn M; Gu, Sumei; McGregor, S Elizabeth; Nicholas, Garth; de Koning, Harry J; Paszat, Lawrence F

2017-02-01

The National Lung Screening Trial (NLST) results indicate that computed tomography (CT) lung cancer screening for current and former smokers with three annual screens can be cost-effective in a trial setting. However, the cost-effectiveness in a population-based setting with >3 screening rounds is uncertain. Therefore, the objective of this study was to estimate the cost-effectiveness of lung cancer screening in a population-based setting in Ontario, Canada, and evaluate the effects of screening eligibility criteria. This study used microsimulation modeling informed by various data sources, including the Ontario Health Insurance Plan (OHIP), Ontario Cancer Registry, smoking behavior surveys, and the NLST. Persons, born between 1940 and 1969, were examined from a third-party health care payer perspective across a lifetime horizon. Starting in 2015, 576 CT screening scenarios were examined, varying by age to start and end screening, smoking eligibility criteria, and screening interval. Among the examined outcome measures were lung cancer deaths averted, life-years gained, percentage ever screened, costs (in 2015 Canadian dollars), and overdiagnosis. The results of the base-case analysis indicated that annual screening was more cost-effective than biennial screening. Scenarios with eligibility criteria that required as few as 20 pack-years were dominated by scenarios that required higher numbers of accumulated pack-years. In general, scenarios that applied stringent smoking eligibility criteria (i.e., requiring higher levels of accumulated smoking exposure) were more cost-effective than scenarios with less stringent smoking eligibility criteria, with modest differences in life-years gained. Annual screening between ages 55-75 for persons who smoked ≥40 pack-years and who currently smoke or quit ≤10 y ago yielded an incremental cost-effectiveness ratio of $41,136 Canadian dollars ($33,825 in May 1, 2015, United States dollars) per life-year gained (compared to annual screening between ages 60-75 for persons who smoked ≥40 pack-years and who currently smoke or quit ≤10 y ago), which was considered optimal at a cost-effectiveness threshold of $50,000 Canadian dollars ($41,114 May 1, 2015, US dollars). If 50% lower or higher attributable costs were assumed, the incremental cost-effectiveness ratio of this scenario was estimated to be $38,240 ($31,444 May 1, 2015, US dollars) or $48,525 ($39,901 May 1, 2015, US dollars), respectively. If 50% lower or higher costs for CT examinations were assumed, the incremental cost-effectiveness ratio of this scenario was estimated to be $28,630 ($23,542 May 1, 2015, US dollars) or $73,507 ($60,443 May 1, 2015, US dollars), respectively. This scenario would screen 9.56% (499,261 individuals) of the total population (ever- and never-smokers) at least once, which would require 4,788,523 CT examinations, and reduce lung cancer mortality in the total population by 9.05% (preventing 13,108 lung cancer deaths), while 12.53% of screen-detected cancers would be overdiagnosed (4,282 overdiagnosed cases). Sensitivity analyses indicated that the overall results were most sensitive to variations in CT examination costs. Quality of life was not incorporated in the analyses, and assumptions for follow-up procedures were based on data from the NLST, which may not be generalizable to a population-based setting. Lung cancer screening with stringent smoking eligibility criteria can be cost-effective in a population-based setting.

Animal board invited review: Dairy cow lameness expenditures, losses and total cost.

PubMed

Dolecheck, K; Bewley, J

2018-07-01

Lameness is one of the most costly dairy cow diseases, yet adoption of lameness prevention strategies remains low. Low lameness prevention adoption might be attributable to a lack of understanding regarding total lameness costs. In this review, we evaluated the contribution of different expenditures and losses to total lameness costs. Evaluated expenditures included labor for treatment, therapeutic supplies, lameness detection and lameness control and prevention. Evaluated losses included non-saleable milk, reduced milk production, reduced reproductive performance, increased animal death, increased animal culling, disease interrelationships, lameness recurrence and reduced animal welfare. The previous literature on total lameness cost estimates was also summarized. The reviewed studies indicated that previous estimates of total lameness costs are variable and inconsistent in the expenditures and losses they include. Many of the identified expenditure and loss categories require further research to accurately include in total lameness cost estimates. Future research should focus on identifying costs associated with specific lameness conditions, differing lameness severity levels, and differing stages of lactation at onset of lameness to provide better total lameness cost estimates that can be useful for decision making at both the herd and individual cow level.

Costs of occupational injury and illness across industries.

PubMed

Leigh, J Paul; Waehrer, Geetha; Miller, Ted R; Keenan, Craig

2004-06-01

This study has ranked industries using estimated total costs and costs per worker. This incidence study of nationwide data was carried out in 1993. The main outcome measure was total cost for medical care, lost productivity, and pain and suffering for the entire United States (US). The analysis was conducted using fatal and nonfatal injury and illness data recorded in large data sets from the US Bureau of Labor Statistics. Cost data were derived from workers' compensation records, estimates of lost wages, and jury awards. Current-value calculations were used to express all costs in 1993 in US dollars. The following industries were at the top of the list for average cost (cost per worker): taxicabs, bituminous coal and lignite mining, logging, crushed stone, oil field services, water transportation services, sand and gravel, and trucking. Industries high on the total-cost list were trucking, eating and drinking places, hospitals, grocery stores, nursing homes, motor vehicles, and department stores. Industries at the bottom of the cost-per-worker list included legal services, security brokers, mortgage bankers, security exchanges, and labor union offices. Detailed methodology was developed for ranking industries by total cost and cost per worker. Ranking by total costs provided information on total burden of hazards, and ranking by cost per worker provided information on risk. Industries that ranked high on both lists deserve increased research and regulatory attention.

The Next Generation of Lab and Classroom Computing - The Silver Lining

DTIC Science & Technology

2016-12-01

desktop infrastructure (VDI) solution, as well as the computing solutions at three universities, was selected as the basis for comparison. The research... infrastructure , VDI, hardware cost, software cost, manpower, availability, cloud computing, private cloud, bring your own device, BYOD, thin client...virtual desktop infrastructure (VDI) solution, as well as the computing solutions at three universities, was selected as the basis for comparison. The

Visual Information (6)

DTIC Science & Technology

1987-12-01

definition 33., below). 7. Commercial VI Production. A completed VI production, purchased off-the- shelf; i.e., from the stocks of a vendor. 8. Computer ...Generated Graphics. The production of graphics through an electronic medium based on a computer or computer techniques. 9. Contract VI Production. A VI...displays, presentations, and exhibits prepared manually, by machine, or by computer . 16. Indirect Costs. An item of cost (or the aggregate thereof) that is

A cost-analysis of complex workplace nutrition education and environmental dietary modification interventions.

PubMed

Fitzgerald, Sarah; Kirby, Ann; Murphy, Aileen; Geaney, Fiona; Perry, Ivan J

2017-01-09

The workplace has been identified as a priority setting to positively influence individuals' dietary behaviours. However, a dearth of evidence exists regarding the costs of implementing and delivering workplace dietary interventions. This study aimed to conduct a cost-analysis of workplace nutrition education and environmental dietary modification interventions from an employer's perspective. Cost data were obtained from a workplace dietary intervention trial, the Food Choice at Work Study. Micro-costing methods estimated costs associated with implementing and delivering the interventions for 1 year in four multinational manufacturing workplaces in Cork, Ireland. The workplaces were allocated to one of the following groups: control, nutrition education alone, environmental dietary modification alone and nutrition education and environmental dietary modification combined. A total of 850 employees were recruited across the four workplaces. For comparison purposes, total costs were standardised for 500 employees per workplace. The combined intervention reported the highest total costs of €31,108. The nutrition education intervention reported total costs of €28,529. Total costs for the environmental dietary modification intervention were €3689. Total costs for the control workplace were zero. The average annual cost per employee was; combined intervention: €62, nutrition education: €57, environmental modification: €7 and control: €0. Nutritionist's time was the main cost contributor across all interventions, (ranging from 53 to 75% of total costs). Within multi-component interventions, the relative cost of implementing and delivering nutrition education elements is high compared to environmental modification strategies. A workplace environmental modification strategy added marginal additional cost, relative to the control. Findings will inform employers and public health policy-makers regarding the economic feasibility of implementing and scaling dietary interventions. Current Controlled Trials: ISRCTN35108237 . Date of registration: The trial was retrospectively registered on 02/07/2013.

Study for analysis of benefit versus cost of low thrust propulsion system

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hamlyn, K. M.; Robertson, R. I.; Rose, L. J.

1983-01-01

The benefits and costs associated with placing large space systems (LSS) in operational orbits were investigated, and a flexible computer model for analyzing these benefits and costs was developed. A mission model for LSS was identified that included both NASA/Commercial and DOD missions. This model included a total of 68 STS launches for the NASA/Commercial missions and 202 launches for the DOD missions. The mission catalog was of sufficient depth to define the structure type, mass and acceleration limits of each LSS. Conceptual primary propulsion stages (PPS) designs for orbital transfer were developed for three low thrust LO2/LH2 engines baselined for the study. The performance characteristics for each of these PPS was compared to the LSS mission catalog to create a mission capture. The costs involved in placing the LSS in their operational orbits were identified. The two primary costs were that of the PPS and of the STS launch. The cost of the LSS was not included as it is not a function of the PPS performance. The basic relationships and algorithms that could be used to describe the costs were established. The benefit criteria for the mission model were also defined. These included mission capture, reliability, technical risk, development time, and growth potential. Rating guidelines were established for each parameter. For flexibility, each parameter is assigned a weighting factor.

Cost Estimating Relationships for U.S. Navy Ships

DTIC Science & Technology

1983-09-01

ORGANIZATION NAME AND ADDRESS Institute for Defense Analyses iBOl North Beauregard Street Alexandria, Virginia 22311 10. PROGRAM ELEMENT, PROJECT ...linear CER also is displayed. In addi- tion. Table S-1 displays the total observed cost, the total estimated cost, and the percent difference...report provided by program year a total end cost for each ship by hull number including outfitting and post delivery costs. This end cost does not

The hidden societal cost of antibiotic resistance per antibiotic prescribed in the United States: an exploratory analysis.

PubMed

Michaelidis, Constantinos I; Fine, Michael J; Lin, Chyongchiou Jeng; Linder, Jeffrey A; Nowalk, Mary Patricia; Shields, Ryan K; Zimmerman, Richard K; Smith, Kenneth J

2016-11-08

Ambulatory antibiotic prescribing contributes to the development of antibiotic resistance and increases societal costs. Here, we estimate the hidden societal cost of antibiotic resistance per antibiotic prescribed in the United States. In an exploratory analysis, we used published data to develop point and range estimates for the hidden societal cost of antibiotic resistance (SCAR) attributable to each ambulatory antibiotic prescription in the United States. We developed four estimation methods that focused on the antibiotic-resistance attributable costs of hospitalization, second-line inpatient antibiotic use, second-line outpatient antibiotic use, and antibiotic stewardship, then summed the estimates across all methods. The total SCAR attributable to each ambulatory antibiotic prescription was estimated to be $13 (range: $3-$95). The greatest contributor to the total SCAR was the cost of hospitalization ($9; 69 % of the total SCAR). The costs of second-line inpatient antibiotic use ($1; 8 % of the total SCAR), second-line outpatient antibiotic use ($2; 15 % of the total SCAR) and antibiotic stewardship ($1; 8 %). This apperars to be an error.; of the total SCAR) were modest contributors to the total SCAR. Assuming an average antibiotic cost of $20, the total SCAR attributable to each ambulatory antibiotic prescription would increase antibiotic costs by 65 % (range: 15-475 %) if incorporated into antibiotic costs paid by patients or payers. Each ambulatory antibiotic prescription is associated with a hidden SCAR that substantially increases the cost of an antibiotic prescription in the United States. This finding raises concerns regarding the magnitude of misalignment between individual and societal antibiotic costs.

Low-cost data analysis systems for processing multispectral scanner data

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Whitely, S. L.

1976-01-01

The basic hardware and software requirements are described for four low cost analysis systems for computer generated land use maps. The data analysis systems consist of an image display system, a small digital computer, and an output recording device. Software is described together with some of the display and recording devices, and typical costs are cited. Computer requirements are given, and two approaches are described for converting black-white film and electrostatic printer output to inexpensive color output products. Examples of output products are shown.

Epilepsy in Sweden: health care costs and loss of productivity--a register-based approach.

PubMed

Bolin, Kristian; Lundgren, Anders; Berggren, Fredrik; Källén, Kristina

2012-12-01

The objective was to estimate health care costs and productivity losses due to epilepsy in Sweden and to compare these estimates to previously published estimates. Register data on health care utilisation, pharmaceutical sales, permanent disability and mortality were used to calculate health care costs and costs that accrue due to productivity losses. By linkage of register information, we were able to distinguish pharmaceuticals prescribed against epilepsy from prescriptions that were prompted by other indications. The estimated total cost of epilepsy in Sweden in 2009 was 441 million, which corresponds to an annual per-patient cost of 8,275. Health care accounted for about 16% of the estimated total cost, and drug costs accounted for about 7% of the total cost. The estimated health care cost corresponded to about 0.2% of the total health care cost in Sweden in 2009. Indirect costs were estimated at 370 million, 84% of which was due to sickness absenteeism. Costs resulting from epilepsy-attributable premature deaths or permanent disability to work accounted for about 1% of the total indirect cost in Sweden in 2009. The per-patient cost of epilepsy is substantial. Thus, even though the prevalence of the illness is relatively small, the aggregated cost that epilepsy incurs on society is significant.

Benchmarking undedicated cloud computing providers for analysis of genomic datasets.

PubMed

Yazar, Seyhan; Gooden, George E C; Mackey, David A; Hewitt, Alex W

2014-01-01

A major bottleneck in biological discovery is now emerging at the computational level. Cloud computing offers a dynamic means whereby small and medium-sized laboratories can rapidly adjust their computational capacity. We benchmarked two established cloud computing services, Amazon Web Services Elastic MapReduce (EMR) on Amazon EC2 instances and Google Compute Engine (GCE), using publicly available genomic datasets (E.coli CC102 strain and a Han Chinese male genome) and a standard bioinformatic pipeline on a Hadoop-based platform. Wall-clock time for complete assembly differed by 52.9% (95% CI: 27.5-78.2) for E.coli and 53.5% (95% CI: 34.4-72.6) for human genome, with GCE being more efficient than EMR. The cost of running this experiment on EMR and GCE differed significantly, with the costs on EMR being 257.3% (95% CI: 211.5-303.1) and 173.9% (95% CI: 134.6-213.1) more expensive for E.coli and human assemblies respectively. Thus, GCE was found to outperform EMR both in terms of cost and wall-clock time. Our findings confirm that cloud computing is an efficient and potentially cost-effective alternative for analysis of large genomic datasets. In addition to releasing our cost-effectiveness comparison, we present available ready-to-use scripts for establishing Hadoop instances with Ganglia monitoring on EC2 or GCE.

Benchmarking Undedicated Cloud Computing Providers for Analysis of Genomic Datasets

PubMed Central

Yazar, Seyhan; Gooden, George E. C.; Mackey, David A.; Hewitt, Alex W.

2014-01-01

A major bottleneck in biological discovery is now emerging at the computational level. Cloud computing offers a dynamic means whereby small and medium-sized laboratories can rapidly adjust their computational capacity. We benchmarked two established cloud computing services, Amazon Web Services Elastic MapReduce (EMR) on Amazon EC2 instances and Google Compute Engine (GCE), using publicly available genomic datasets (E.coli CC102 strain and a Han Chinese male genome) and a standard bioinformatic pipeline on a Hadoop-based platform. Wall-clock time for complete assembly differed by 52.9% (95% CI: 27.5–78.2) for E.coli and 53.5% (95% CI: 34.4–72.6) for human genome, with GCE being more efficient than EMR. The cost of running this experiment on EMR and GCE differed significantly, with the costs on EMR being 257.3% (95% CI: 211.5–303.1) and 173.9% (95% CI: 134.6–213.1) more expensive for E.coli and human assemblies respectively. Thus, GCE was found to outperform EMR both in terms of cost and wall-clock time. Our findings confirm that cloud computing is an efficient and potentially cost-effective alternative for analysis of large genomic datasets. In addition to releasing our cost-effectiveness comparison, we present available ready-to-use scripts for establishing Hadoop instances with Ganglia monitoring on EC2 or GCE. PMID:25247298

Oil and gas pipeline construction cost analysis and developing regression models for cost estimation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Thaduri, Ravi Kiran

In this study, cost data for 180 pipelines and 136 compressor stations have been analyzed. On the basis of the distribution analysis, regression models have been developed. Material, Labor, ROW and miscellaneous costs make up the total cost of a pipeline construction. The pipelines are analyzed based on different pipeline lengths, diameter, location, pipeline volume and year of completion. In a pipeline construction, labor costs dominate the total costs with a share of about 40%. Multiple non-linear regression models are developed to estimate the component costs of pipelines for various cross-sectional areas, lengths and locations. The Compressor stations are analyzed based on the capacity, year of completion and location. Unlike the pipeline costs, material costs dominate the total costs in the construction of compressor station, with an average share of about 50.6%. Land costs have very little influence on the total costs. Similar regression models are developed to estimate the component costs of compressor station for various capacities and locations.

Evaluating Thin Client Computers for Use by the Polish Army

DTIC Science & Technology

2006-06-01

43 Figure 15. Annual Electricity Cost and Savings for 5 to 100 Users (source: Thin Client Computing...50 percent in hard costs in the first year of thin client network deployment.20 However, the greatest savings come from the reduction in soft costs ...resources from both the classrooms and home. The thin client solution increased the reliability of the IT infrastructure and resulted in cost savings

A Low Cost Micro-Computer Based Local Area Network for Medical Office and Medical Center Automation

PubMed Central

Epstein, Mel H.; Epstein, Lynn H.; Emerson, Ron G.

1984-01-01

A Low Cost Micro-computer based Local Area Network for medical office automation is described which makes use of an array of multiple and different personal computers interconnected by a local area network. Each computer on the network functions as fully potent workstations for data entry and report generation. The network allows each workstation complete access to the entire database. Additionally, designated computers may serve as access ports for remote terminals. Through “Gateways” the network may serve as a front end for a large mainframe, or may interface with another network. The system provides for the medical office environment the expandability and flexibility of a multi-terminal mainframe system at a far lower cost without sacrifice of performance.

Influence of computational fluid dynamics on experimental aerospace facilities: A fifteen year projection

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1983-01-01

An assessment was made of the impact of developments in computational fluid dynamics (CFD) on the traditional role of aerospace ground test facilities over the next fifteen years. With improvements in CFD and more powerful scientific computers projected over this period it is expected to have the capability to compute the flow over a complete aircraft at a unit cost three orders of magnitude lower than presently possible. Over the same period improvements in ground test facilities will progress by application of computational techniques including CFD to data acquisition, facility operational efficiency, and simulation of the light envelope; however, no dramatic change in unit cost is expected as greater efficiency will be countered by higher energy and labor costs.

Resource utilization and costs before and after total joint arthroplasty.

PubMed

Bozic, Kevin J; Stacey, Brett; Berger, Ariel; Sadosky, Alesia; Oster, Gerry

2012-03-23

The purpose of this study was to compare pre- and post-surgical healthcare costs in commercially insured total joint arthroplasty (TJA) patients with osteoarthritis (OA) in the United States (U.S.). Using a large healthcare claims database, we identified patients over age 39 with hip or knee OA who underwent unilateral primary TJA (hip or knee) between 1/1/2006 and 9/30/2007. Utilization of healthcare services and costs were aggregated into three periods: 12 months "pre-surgery," 91 days "peri-operative," and 3 to 15 month "follow-up," Mean total pre-surgery costs were compared with follow-up costs using Wilcoxon signed-rank test. 14,912 patients met inclusion criteria for the study. The mean total number of outpatient visits declined from pre-surgery to follow-up (18.0 visits vs 17.1), while the percentage of patients hospitalized increased (from 7.5% to 9.8%) (both p < 0.01). Mean total costs during the follow-up period were 18% higher than during pre-surgery ($11,043 vs. $9,632, p < 0.01), largely due to an increase in the costs of inpatient care associated with hospital readmissions ($3,300 vs. $1,817, p < 0.01). Pharmacotherapy costs were similar for both periods ($2013 [follow-up] vs. $1922 [pre-surgery], p = 0.33); outpatient care costs were slightly lower in the follow-up period ($4338 vs. $4571, p < 0.01). Mean total costs for the peri-operative period were $36,553. Mean total utilization of outpatient healthcare services declined slightly in the first year following TJA (exclusive of the peri-operative period), while mean total healthcare costs increased during the same time period, largely due to increased costs associated with hospital readmissions. Further study is necessary to determine whether healthcare costs decrease in subsequent years.

Minnesota Computer Aided Library System (MCALS); University of Minnesota Subsystem Cost/Benefits Analysis.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lourey, Eugene D., Comp.

The Minnesota Computer Aided Library System (MCALS) provides a basis of unification for library service program development in Minnesota for eventual linkage to the national information network. A prototype plan for communications functions is illustrated. A cost/benefits analysis was made to show the cost/effectiveness potential for MCALS. System…

Data Bases at a State Institution--Costs, Uses and Needs. AIR Forum Paper 1978.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

McLaughlin, Gerald W.

The cost-benefit of administrative data at a state college is placed in perspective relative to the institutional involvement in computer use. The costs of computer operations, personnel, and peripheral equipment expenses related to instruction are analyzed. Data bases and systems support institutional activities, such as registration, and aid…

Computer assisted yarding cost analysis.

Treesearch

Ronald W. Mifflin

1980-01-01

Programs for a programable calculator and a desk-top computer are provided for quickly determining yarding cost and comparing the economics of alternative yarding systems. The programs emphasize the importance of the relationship between production rate and machine rate, which is the hourly cost of owning and operating yarding equipment. In addition to generating the...

7 CFR 993.159 - Payments for services performed with respect to reserve tonnage prunes.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-01-01

... overhead costs, which include those for supervision, indirect labor, fuel, power and water, taxes and... tonnage prunes. The Committee will compute the average industry cost for holding reserve pool prunes by... choose to exclude the high and low data in computing an industry average. The industry average costs may...

7 CFR 993.159 - Payments for services performed with respect to reserve tonnage prunes.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-01-01

... overhead costs, which include those for supervision, indirect labor, fuel, power and water, taxes and... tonnage prunes. The Committee will compute the average industry cost for holding reserve pool prunes by... choose to exclude the high and low data in computing an industry average. The industry average costs may...

7 CFR 993.159 - Payments for services performed with respect to reserve tonnage prunes.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-01-01

... overhead costs, which include those for supervision, indirect labor, fuel, power and water, taxes and... tonnage prunes. The Committee will compute the average industry cost for holding reserve pool prunes by... choose to exclude the high and low data in computing an industry average. The industry average costs may...

Analysis of the Effects of Fixed Costs on Learning Curve Calculations

DTIC Science & Technology

1994-09-01

Gansler, Jacques S . The Defense Industry. Cambridge MA: MIT Press, 1980. 11. Horngren , Charles T. and George Foster. Cost Accounting : A Managerial...Incorrect Total Cost Estimates and Comparison to Correct/Correct Total C o st E stim a te s ...7 1 12. Incorrect/Correct Total Cost Estimates and Comparison to Correct/Correct Total C o st E stim a te s

Annual Costs of Care for Pediatric Irritable Bowel Syndrome, Functional Abdominal Pain, and Functional Abdominal Pain Syndrome.

PubMed

Hoekman, Daniël R; Rutten, Juliette M T M; Vlieger, Arine M; Benninga, Marc A; Dijkgraaf, Marcel G W

2015-11-01

To estimate annual medical and nonmedical costs of care for children diagnosed with irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) or functional abdominal pain (syndrome; FAP/FAPS). Baseline data from children with IBS or FAP/FAPS who were included in a multicenter trial (NTR2725) in The Netherlands were analyzed. Patients' parents completed a questionnaire concerning usage of healthcare resources, travel costs, out-of-pocket expenses, productivity loss of parents, and supportive measures at school. Use of abdominal pain related prescription medication was derived from case reports forms. Total annual costs per patient were calculated as the sum of direct and indirect medical and nonmedical costs. Costs of initial diagnostic investigations were not included. A total of 258 children, mean age 13.4 years (±5.5), were included, and 183 (70.9%) were female. Total annual costs per patient were estimated to be €2512.31. Inpatient and outpatient healthcare use were major cost drivers, accounting for 22.5% and 35.2% of total annual costs, respectively. Parental productivity loss accounted for 22.2% of total annual costs. No difference was found in total costs between children with IBS or FAP/FAPS. Pediatric abdominal pain related functional gastrointestinal disorders impose a large economic burden on patients' families and healthcare systems. More than one-half of total annual costs of IBS and FAP/FAPS consist of inpatient and outpatient healthcare use. Netherlands Trial Registry: NTR2725. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Dynamic effects of root system architecture improve root water uptake in 1-D process-based soil-root hydrodynamics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bouda, Martin; Saiers, James E.

2017-12-01

Root system architecture (RSA) can significantly affect plant access to water, total transpiration, as well as its partitioning by soil depth, with implications for surface heat, water, and carbon budgets. Despite recent advances in land surface model (LSM) descriptions of plant hydraulics, descriptions of RSA have not been included because of their three-dimensional complexity, which makes them generally too computationally costly. Here we demonstrate a new, process-based 1D layered model that captures the dynamic shifts in water potential gradients of 3D RSA under different soil moisture conditions: the RSA stencil. Using root systems calibrated to the rooting profiles of four plant functional types (PFT) of the Community Land Model, we show that the RSA stencil predicts plant water potentials within 2% to the outputs of a full 3D model, under the same assumptions on soil moisture heterogeneity, despite its trivial computational cost, resulting in improved predictions of water uptake and soil moisture compared to a model without RSA in a transient simulation. Our results suggest that LSM predictions of soil moisture dynamics and dependent variables can be improved by the implementation of this model, calibrated for individual PFTs using field observations.

42 CFR 417.588 - Computation of adjusted average per capita cost (AAPCC).

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-10-01

..., COMPETITIVE MEDICAL PLANS, AND HEALTH CARE PREPAYMENT PLANS Medicare Payment: Risk Basis § 417.588 Computation... 42 Public Health 3 2012-10-01 2012-10-01 false Computation of adjusted average per capita cost (AAPCC). 417.588 Section 417.588 Public Health CENTERS FOR MEDICARE & MEDICAID SERVICES, DEPARTMENT OF...

42 CFR 417.588 - Computation of adjusted average per capita cost (AAPCC).

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-10-01

... MEDICAL PLANS, AND HEALTH CARE PREPAYMENT PLANS Medicare Payment: Risk Basis § 417.588 Computation of... 42 Public Health 3 2011-10-01 2011-10-01 false Computation of adjusted average per capita cost (AAPCC). 417.588 Section 417.588 Public Health CENTERS FOR MEDICARE & MEDICAID SERVICES, DEPARTMENT OF...

42 CFR 417.588 - Computation of adjusted average per capita cost (AAPCC).

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... MEDICAL PLANS, AND HEALTH CARE PREPAYMENT PLANS Medicare Payment: Risk Basis § 417.588 Computation of... 42 Public Health 3 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Computation of adjusted average per capita cost (AAPCC). 417.588 Section 417.588 Public Health CENTERS FOR MEDICARE & MEDICAID SERVICES, DEPARTMENT OF...

hPIN/hTAN: Low-Cost e-Banking Secure against Untrusted Computers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, Shujun; Sadeghi, Ahmad-Reza; Schmitz, Roland

We propose hPIN/hTAN, a low-cost token-based e-banking protection scheme when the adversary has full control over the user's computer. Compared with existing hardware-based solutions, hPIN/hTAN depends on neither second trusted channel, nor secure keypad, nor computationally expensive encryption module.

An investigation into the cost, coverage and activities of Helicopter Emergency Medical Services in the state of New South Wales, Australia.

PubMed

Taylor, Colman B; Stevenson, Mark; Jan, Stephen; Liu, Bette; Tall, Gary; Middleton, Paul M; Fitzharris, Michael; Myburgh, John

2011-10-01

Helicopter Emergency Medical Services (HEMS) have been incorporated into modern health systems for their speed and coverage. In the state of New South Wales (NSW), nine HEMS operate from various locations around the state and currently there is no clear picture of their resource implications. The aim of this study was to assess the cost of HEMS in NSW and investigate the factors linked with the variation in the costs, coverage and activities of HEMS. We undertook a survey of HEMS costs, structures and operations in NSW for the 2008/2009 financial year. Costs were estimated from annual reports and contractual agreements. Data related to the structure and operation of services was obtained by face-to-face interviews, from operational data extracted from individual HEMS, from the NSW Ambulance Computer Aided Despatch system and from the Aeromedical Operations Centre database. In order to estimate population coverage for each HEMS, we used GIS mapping techniques with Australian Bureau of Statistics census information. Across HEMS, cost per mission estimates ranged between $9300 and $19,000 and cost per engine hour estimates ranged between $5343 and $15,743. Regarding structural aspects, six HEMS were run by charities or not-for-profit companies (with partial government funding) and three HEMS were run (and fully funded) by the state government through NSW Ambulance. Two HEMS operated as 'hub' services in conjunction with three associated 'satellite' services and in contrast, four services operated independently. Variation also existed between the HEMS in the type of helicopter used, the clinical staffing and the hours of operation. The majority of services undertook both primary scene responses and secondary inter-facility transfers, although the proportion of each type of transport contributing to total operations varied across the services. This investigation highlighted the cost of HEMS operations in NSW which in total equated to over $50 million per annum. Across services, we found large variation in the cost estimates which was underscored by variation in the structure and operations of HEMS. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Solid waste treatment as a high-priority and low-cost alternative for greenhouse gas mitigation.

PubMed

Ayalon, O; Avnimelech, Y; Shechter, M

2001-05-01

The increased concern about environmental problems caused by inadequate waste management, as well as the concern about global warming, promotes actions toward a sustainable management of the organic fraction of the waste. Landfills, the most common means to dispose of municipal solid waste (MSW), lead to the conversion of the organic waste to biogas, containing about 50% methane, a very active greenhouse gas (GHG). One unit of methane has a global warming potential of 21 computed for a 100-year horizon or 56 computed for 20 years. The waste sector in Israel contributes 13% of total greenhouse gases (GHG) emissions for a time horizon of 100 years (for a time horizon of 20 years, the waste sector contribution equals to more than 25% of total GHG emissions). The ultimate goal is to minimize the amount of methane (CH4) by converting it to CO2. This can be achieved by physicochemical means (e.g., landfill gas flare, incineration) or by biological processes (e.g., composting, anaerobic digestion). Since the waste in Israel has a high organic material content, it was found that the most cost-effective means to treat the degradable organic components is by aerobic composting (investment of less than US$ 10 to reduce emission of one ton CO2 equivalent per year). Another benefit of this technology is the ability to implement it within a short period. The suggested approach, which should be implemented especially in developing countries, could reduce a significant amount of GHG at relatively low cost and short time. The development of a national policy for proper waste treatment can be a significant means to abate GHG emissions in the short term, enabling a gain in time to develop other means for the long run. In addition, the use of CO2 quotas will credit the waste sector and will promote profitable proper waste management.

Virtualization and cloud computing in dentistry.

PubMed

Chow, Frank; Muftu, Ali; Shorter, Richard

2014-01-01

The use of virtualization and cloud computing has changed the way we use computers. Virtualization is a method of placing software called a hypervisor on the hardware of a computer or a host operating system. It allows a guest operating system to run on top of the physical computer with a virtual machine (i.e., virtual computer). Virtualization allows multiple virtual computers to run on top of one physical computer and to share its hardware resources, such as printers, scanners, and modems. This increases the efficient use of the computer by decreasing costs (e.g., hardware, electricity administration, and management) since only one physical computer is needed and running. This virtualization platform is the basis for cloud computing. It has expanded into areas of server and storage virtualization. One of the commonly used dental storage systems is cloud storage. Patient information is encrypted as required by the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) and stored on off-site private cloud services for a monthly service fee. As computer costs continue to increase, so too will the need for more storage and processing power. Virtual and cloud computing will be a method for dentists to minimize costs and maximize computer efficiency in the near future. This article will provide some useful information on current uses of cloud computing.

The financial and health burden of diabetic ambulatory care sensitive hospitalisations in Mexico.

PubMed

Lugo-Palacios, David G; Cairns, John

2016-01-01

To estimate the financial and health burden of diabetic ambulatory care sensitive hospitalisations (ACSH) in Mexico during 2001-2011. We identified ACSH due to diabetic complications in general hospitals run by local health ministries and estimated their financial cost using diagnostic related groups. The health burden estimation assumes that patients would not have experienced complications if they had received appropriate primary care and computes the associated Disability-Adjusted Life Years (DALYs). The financial cost of diabetic ACSH increased by 125% in real terms and their health burden in 2010 accounted for 4.2% of total DALYs associated with diabetes in Mexico. Avoiding preventable hospitalisations could free resources within the health system for other health purposes. In addition, patients with ACSH suffer preventable losses of health that should be considered when assessing the performance of any primary care intervention.

Using MODIS Terra 250 m Imagery to Map Concentrations of Total Suspended Matter in Coastal Waters

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Miller, Richard L.; McKee, Brent A.

2004-01-01

High concentrations of suspended particulate matter in coastal waters directly effect or govern numerous water column and benthic processes. The concentration of suspended sediments derived from bottom sediment resuspension or discharge of sediment-laden rivers is highly variable over a wide range of time and space scales. Although there has been considerable effort to use remotely sensed images to provide synoptic maps of suspended particulate matter, there are limited routine applications of this technology due in-part to the low spatial resolution, long revisit period, or cost of most remotely sensed data. In contrast, near daily coverage of medium-resolution data is available from the MODIS Terra instrument without charge from several data distribution gateways. Equally important, several display and processing programs are available that operate on low cost computers.

Controlling the phase locking of stochastic magnetic bits for ultra-low power computation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mizrahi, Alice; Locatelli, Nicolas; Lebrun, Romain; Cros, Vincent; Fukushima, Akio; Kubota, Hitoshi; Yuasa, Shinji; Querlioz, Damien; Grollier, Julie

2016-07-01

When fabricating magnetic memories, one of the main challenges is to maintain the bit stability while downscaling. Indeed, for magnetic volumes of a few thousand nm3, the energy barrier between magnetic configurations becomes comparable to the thermal energy at room temperature. Then, switches of the magnetization spontaneously occur. These volatile, superparamagnetic nanomagnets are generally considered useless. But what if we could use them as low power computational building blocks? Remarkably, they can oscillate without the need of any external dc drive, and despite their stochastic nature, they can beat in unison with an external periodic signal. Here we show that the phase locking of superparamagnetic tunnel junctions can be induced and suppressed by electrical noise injection. We develop a comprehensive model giving the conditions for synchronization, and predict that it can be achieved with a total energy cost lower than 10-13 J. Our results open the path to ultra-low power computation based on the controlled synchronization of oscillators.

Controlling the phase locking of stochastic magnetic bits for ultra-low power computation.

PubMed

Mizrahi, Alice; Locatelli, Nicolas; Lebrun, Romain; Cros, Vincent; Fukushima, Akio; Kubota, Hitoshi; Yuasa, Shinji; Querlioz, Damien; Grollier, Julie

2016-07-26

When fabricating magnetic memories, one of the main challenges is to maintain the bit stability while downscaling. Indeed, for magnetic volumes of a few thousand nm(3), the energy barrier between magnetic configurations becomes comparable to the thermal energy at room temperature. Then, switches of the magnetization spontaneously occur. These volatile, superparamagnetic nanomagnets are generally considered useless. But what if we could use them as low power computational building blocks? Remarkably, they can oscillate without the need of any external dc drive, and despite their stochastic nature, they can beat in unison with an external periodic signal. Here we show that the phase locking of superparamagnetic tunnel junctions can be induced and suppressed by electrical noise injection. We develop a comprehensive model giving the conditions for synchronization, and predict that it can be achieved with a total energy cost lower than 10(-13) J. Our results open the path to ultra-low power computation based on the controlled synchronization of oscillators.

Solution of nonlinear time-dependent PDEs through componentwise approximation of matrix functions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cibotarica, Alexandru; Lambers, James V.; Palchak, Elisabeth M.

2016-09-01

Exponential propagation iterative (EPI) methods provide an efficient approach to the solution of large stiff systems of ODEs, compared to standard integrators. However, the bulk of the computational effort in these methods is due to products of matrix functions and vectors, which can become very costly at high resolution due to an increase in the number of Krylov projection steps needed to maintain accuracy. In this paper, it is proposed to modify EPI methods by using Krylov subspace spectral (KSS) methods, instead of standard Krylov projection methods, to compute products of matrix functions and vectors. Numerical experiments demonstrate that this modification causes the number of Krylov projection steps to become bounded independently of the grid size, thus dramatically improving efficiency and scalability. As a result, for each test problem featured, as the total number of grid points increases, the growth in computation time is just below linear, while other methods achieved this only on selected test problems or not at all.

Strategies for reducing implant costs in the revision total knee arthroplasty episode of care.

PubMed

Elbuluk, Ameer M; Old, Andrew B; Bosco, Joseph A; Schwarzkopf, Ran; Iorio, Richard

2017-12-01

Implant price has been identified as a significant contributing factor to high costs associated with revision total knee arthroplasty (rTKA). The goal of this study is to analyze the cost of implants used in rTKAs and to compare this pricing with 2 alternative pricing models. Using our institutional database, we identified 52 patients from January 1, 2014 to December 31, 2014. Average cost of components for each case was calculated and compared to the total hospital cost for that admission. Costs for an all-component revision were then compared to a proposed "direct to hospital" (DTH) standardized pricing model and a fixed price revision option. Potential savings were calculated from these figures. On average, 28% of the total hospital cost was spent on implants for rTKA. The average cost for revision of all components was $13,640 and ranged from $3000 to $28,000. On average, this represented 32.7% of the total hospital cost. Direct to hospital implant pricing could potentially save approximately $7000 per rTKA, and the fixed pricing model could provide a further $1000 reduction per rTKA-potentially saving $8000 per case on implants alone. Alternative implant pricing models could help lower the total cost of rTKA, which would allow hospitals to achieve significant cost containment.

Association of Hospital Costs With Complications Following Total Gastrectomy for Gastric Adenocarcinoma.

PubMed

Selby, Luke V; Gennarelli, Renee L; Schnorr, Geoffrey C; Solomon, Stephen B; Schattner, Mark A; Elkin, Elena B; Bach, Peter B; Strong, Vivian E

2017-10-01

Postoperative complications are associated with increased hospital costs following major surgery, but the mechanism by which they increase cost and the categories of care that drive this increase are poorly described. To describe the association of postoperative complications with hospital costs following total gastrectomy for gastric adenocarcinoma. This retrospective analysis of a prospectively collected gastric cancer surgery database at a single National Cancer Institute-designated comprehensive cancer center included all patients undergoing curative-intent total gastrectomy for gastric adenocarcinoma between January 2009 and December 2012 and was conducted in 2015 and 2016. Ninety-day normalized postoperative costs. Hospital accounting system costs were normalized to reflect Medicare reimbursement levels using the ratio of hospital costs to Medicare reimbursement and categorized into major cost categories. Differences between costs in Medicare proportional dollars (MP $) can be interpreted as the amount that would be reimbursed to an average hospital by Medicare if it paid differentially based on types and extent of postoperative complications. In total, 120 patients underwent curative-intent total gastrectomy for stage I through III gastric adenocarcinoma between 2009 and 2012. Of these, 79 patients (65.8%) were men, and the median (interquartile range) age was 64 (52-70) years. The 51 patients (42.5%) who underwent an uncomplicated total gastrectomy had a mean (SD) normalized cost of MP $12 330 (MP $2500), predominantly owing to the cost of surgical care (mean [SD] cost, MP $6830 [MP $1600]). The 34 patients (28.3%) who had a major complication had a mean (SD) normalized cost of MP $37 700 (MP $28 090). Surgical care was more expensive in these patients (mean [SD] cost, MP $8970 [MP $2750]) but was a smaller contributor to total cost (24%) owing to increased costs from room and board (mean [SD] cost, MP $11 940 [MP $8820]), consultations (mean [SD] cost, MP $3530 [MP $2410]), and intensive care unit care (mean [SD] cost, MP $7770 [MP $14 310]). Major complications were associated with tripled normalized costs following curative-intent total gastrectomy. Most of the excess costs were related to the treatment of complications. Interventions that decrease the number or severity of postoperative complications could result in substantial cost savings.

Total hospital costs of surgical treatment for adult spinal deformity: an extended follow-up study.

PubMed

McCarthy, Ian M; Hostin, Richard A; Ames, Christopher P; Kim, Han J; Smith, Justin S; Boachie-Adjei, Ohenaba; Schwab, Frank J; Klineberg, Eric O; Shaffrey, Christopher I; Gupta, Munish C; Polly, David W

2014-10-01

Whereas the costs of primary surgery, revisions, and selected complications for adult spinal deformity (ASD) have been individually reported in the literature, the total costs over several years after surgery have not been assessed. The determinants of such costs are also not well understood in the literature. This study analyzes the total hospital costs and operating room (OR) costs of ASD surgery through extended follow-up. Single-center retrospective analysis of consecutive surgical patients. Four hundred eighty-four consecutive patients undergoing surgical treatment for ASD from January 2005 through January 2011 with minimum three levels fused. Costs were collected from hospital administrative data on the total hospital costs incurred for the operation and any related readmissions, expressed in 2010 dollars and discounted at 3.5% per year. Detailed data on OR costs, including implants and biologics, were also collected. We performed a series of paired t tests and Wilcoxon signed-rank tests for differences in total hospital costs over different follow-up periods. The goal of these tests was to identify a time period over which average costs plateau and remain relatively constant over time. Generalized linear model regression was used to estimate the effect of patient and surgical factors on hospital inpatient costs, with different models estimated for different follow-up periods. A similar regression analysis was performed separately for OR costs and all other hospital costs. Patients were predominantly women (n=415 or 86%) with an average age of 48 (18-82) years and an average follow-up of 4.8 (2-8) years. Total hospital costs averaged $120,394, with primary surgery averaging $103,143 and total readmission costs averaging $67,262 per patient with a readmission (n=130 or 27% of all patients). Operating room costs averaged $70,514 per patient, constituting the majority (59%) of total hospital costs. Average total hospital costs across all patients significantly increased (p<.01) after primary surgery, from $111,807 at 1-year follow-up to $126,323 at 4-year follow-up. Regression results also revealed physician preference as the largest determinant of OR costs, accounting for $14,780 of otherwise unexplained OR cost differences across patients, with no significant physician effects on all other non-OR costs (p<.05). The incidence of readmissions increased the average cost of ASD surgery by more than 70%, illustrating the financial burden of revisions/reoperations; however, the cost burden resulting from readmissions appeared to taper off within 5 years after surgery. The estimated impact of physician preference on OR costs also highlights the variation in current practice and the opportunity for large cost reductions via a more standardized approach in the use of implants and biologics. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Cost analysis of routine immunisation in Zambia.

PubMed

Schütte, Carl; Chansa, Collins; Marinda, Edmore; Guthrie, Teresa A; Banda, Stanley; Nombewu, Zipozihle; Motlogelwa, Katlego; Lervik, Marita; Brenzel, Logan; Kinghorn, Anthony

2015-05-07

This study aimed to inform planning and funding by providing updated, detailed information on total and unit costs of routine immunisation (RI) in Zambia, a GAVI-eligible lower middle-income country with a population of 13 million. The exercise was part of a multi-country study on costs and financing of routine immunisation (EPIC) that utilized a common, ingredients-based approach to costing. Data on inputs, prices and outputs were collected in a stratified, random sample of 51 facilities in nine districts between December 2012 and March 2013 using a pre-tested questionnaire. Shared inputs were allocated to RI costs on the basis of tracing factors developed for the study. A comprehensive set of costs were analysed to obtain total and unit costs, at facility and above-facility levels. The total annual economic cost of RI was $38.16 million, equivalent to approximately 10% of government health spending. Government contributed 83% of finances. Labour accounted for the lion's share (49%) of total costs followed by vaccines (16%) and travel allowances (12%). Analysis of specific activity costs showed that outreach and facility-based services accounted for half of total economic costs. Costs for managing the program at district, provincial and national levels (above-facility costs) represented 24% of total costs. Average unit costs were $7.18 per dose, $59.32 per infant and $65.89 per DPT3 immunised child, with markedly higher unit costs in rural facilities. Analyses suggest that greater efficiency is associated with higher utilisation levels and urban facility type. Total and unit costs, and government's contribution, were considerably higher than previous Zambian estimates and international benchmarks. These findings have substantial implications for planners, efficiency improvement and sustainable financing, particularly as new vaccines are introduced. Variations in immunisation costs at facility level warrant further statistical analyses. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Early versus late parenteral nutrition in ICU patients: cost analysis of the EPaNIC trial

PubMed Central

2012-01-01

Introduction The EPaNIC randomized controlled multicentre trial showed that postponing initiation of parenteral nutrition (PN) in ICU-patients to beyond the first week (Late-PN) enhanced recovery, as compared with Early-PN. This was mediated by fewer infections, accelerated recovery from organ failure and reduced duration of hospitalization. Now, the trial's preplanned cost analysis (N = 4640) from the Belgian healthcare payers' perspective is reported. Methods Cost data were retrieved from individual patient invoices. Undiscounted total healthcare costs were calculated for the index hospital stay. A cost tree based on acquisition of new infections and on prolonged length-of-stay was constructed. Contribution of 8 cost categories to total hospitalization costs was analyzed. The origin of drug costs was clarified in detail through the Anatomical Therapeutic Chemical (ATC) classification system. The potential impact of Early-PN on total hospitalization costs in other healthcare systems was explored in a sensitivity analysis. Results ICU-patients developing new infection (24.4%) were responsible for 42.7% of total costs, while ICU-patients staying beyond one week (24.3%) accounted for 43.3% of total costs. Pharmacy-related costs represented 30% of total hospitalization costs and were increased by Early-PN (+608.00 EUR/patient, p = 0.01). Notably, costs for ATC-J (anti-infective agents) (+227.00 EUR/patient, p = 0.02) and ATC-B (comprising PN) (+220.00 EUR/patient, p = 0.006) drugs were increased by Early-PN. Sensitivity analysis revealed a mean total cost increase of 1,210.00 EUR/patient (p = 0.02) by Early-PN, when incorporating the full PN costs. Conclusions The increased costs by Early-PN were mainly pharmacy-related and explained by higher expenditures for PN and anti-infective agents. The use of Early-PN in critically ill patients can thus not be recommended for both clinical (no benefit) and cost-related reasons. Trial registration ClinicalTrials.gov NCT00512122. PMID:22632574

Cost analysis of the CTLB Study, a multitherapy antenatal education programme to reduce routine interventions in labour

PubMed Central

Dahlen, Hannah G; Smith, Caroline A; Finlayson, Kenneth William; Downe, Soo

2018-01-01

Objective To assess whether the multitherapy antenatal education ‘CTLB’ (Complementary Therapies for Labour and Birth) Study programme leads to net cost savings. Design Cost analysis of the CTLB Study, using analysis of outcomes and hospital funding data. Methods We take a payer perspective and use Australian Refined Diagnosis-Related Group (AR-DRG) cost data to estimate the potential savings per woman to the payer (government or private insurer). We consider scenarios in which the intervention cost is either borne by the woman or by the payer. Savings are computed as the difference in total cost between the control group and the study group. Results If the cost of the intervention is not borne by the payer, the average saving to the payer was calculated to be $A808 per woman. If the payer covers the cost of the programme, this figure reduces to $A659 since the average cost of delivering the programme was $A149 per woman. All these findings are significant at the 95% confidence level. Significantly more women in the study group experienced a normal vaginal birth, and significantly fewer women in the study group experienced a caesarean section. The main cost saving resulted from the reduced rate of caesarean section in the study group. Conclusion The CTLB antenatal education programme leads to significant savings to payers that come from reduced use of hospital resources. Depending on which perspective is considered, and who is responsible for covering the cost of the programme, the net savings vary from $A659 to $A808 per woman. Compared with the average cost of birth in the control group, we conclude that the programme could lead to a reduction in birth-related healthcare costs of approximately 9%. Trial registration number ACTRN12611001126909. PMID:29439002

Specialized computer architectures for computational aerodynamics

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Stevenson, D. K.

1978-01-01

In recent years, computational fluid dynamics has made significant progress in modelling aerodynamic phenomena. Currently, one of the major barriers to future development lies in the compute-intensive nature of the numerical formulations and the relative high cost of performing these computations on commercially available general purpose computers, a cost high with respect to dollar expenditure and/or elapsed time. Today's computing technology will support a program designed to create specialized computing facilities to be dedicated to the important problems of computational aerodynamics. One of the still unresolved questions is the organization of the computing components in such a facility. The characteristics of fluid dynamic problems which will have significant impact on the choice of computer architecture for a specialized facility are reviewed.

Efficient methods for implementation of multi-level nonrigid mass-preserving image registration on GPUs and multi-threaded CPUs.

PubMed

Ellingwood, Nathan D; Yin, Youbing; Smith, Matthew; Lin, Ching-Long

2016-04-01

Faster and more accurate methods for registration of images are important for research involved in conducting population-based studies that utilize medical imaging, as well as improvements for use in clinical applications. We present a novel computation- and memory-efficient multi-level method on graphics processing units (GPU) for performing registration of two computed tomography (CT) volumetric lung images. We developed a computation- and memory-efficient Diffeomorphic Multi-level B-Spline Transform Composite (DMTC) method to implement nonrigid mass-preserving registration of two CT lung images on GPU. The framework consists of a hierarchy of B-Spline control grids of increasing resolution. A similarity criterion known as the sum of squared tissue volume difference (SSTVD) was adopted to preserve lung tissue mass. The use of SSTVD consists of the calculation of the tissue volume, the Jacobian, and their derivatives, which makes its implementation on GPU challenging due to memory constraints. The use of the DMTC method enabled reduced computation and memory storage of variables with minimal communication between GPU and Central Processing Unit (CPU) due to ability to pre-compute values. The method was assessed on six healthy human subjects. Resultant GPU-generated displacement fields were compared against the previously validated CPU counterpart fields, showing good agreement with an average normalized root mean square error (nRMS) of 0.044±0.015. Runtime and performance speedup are compared between single-threaded CPU, multi-threaded CPU, and GPU algorithms. Best performance speedup occurs at the highest resolution in the GPU implementation for the SSTVD cost and cost gradient computations, with a speedup of 112 times that of the single-threaded CPU version and 11 times over the twelve-threaded version when considering average time per iteration using a Nvidia Tesla K20X GPU. The proposed GPU-based DMTC method outperforms its multi-threaded CPU version in terms of runtime. Total registration time reduced runtime to 2.9min on the GPU version, compared to 12.8min on twelve-threaded CPU version and 112.5min on a single-threaded CPU. Furthermore, the GPU implementation discussed in this work can be adapted for use of other cost functions that require calculation of the first derivatives. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Processor Would Find Best Paths On Map

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Eberhardt, Silvio P.

1990-01-01

Proposed very-large-scale integrated (VLSI) circuit image-data processor finds path of least cost from specified origin to any destination on map. Cost of traversal assigned to each picture element of map. Path of least cost from originating picture element to every other picture element computed as path that preserves as much as possible of signal transmitted by originating picture element. Dedicated microprocessor at each picture element stores cost of traversal and performs its share of computations of paths of least cost. Least-cost-path problem occurs in research, military maneuvers, and in planning routes of vehicles.

Cost-analysis of robotic-assisted laparoscopic hysterectomy versus total abdominal hysterectomy for women with endometrial cancer and atypical complex hyperplasia.

PubMed

Herling, Suzanne F; Palle, Connie; Møller, Ann M; Thomsen, Thordis; Sørensen, Jan

2016-03-01

The aim of this study was to analyse the hospital cost of treatment with robotic-assisted laparoscopic hysterectomy and total abdominal hysterectomy for women with endometrial cancer or atypical complex hyperplasia and to identify differences in resource use and cost. This cost analysis was based on two cohorts: women treated with robotic-assisted laparoscopic hysterectomy (n = 202) or with total abdominal hysterectomy (n = 158) at Copenhagen University Hospital, Herlev, Denmark. We conducted an activity-based cost analysis including consumables and healthcare professionals' salaries. As cost-drivers we included severe complications, duration of surgery, anesthesia and stay at the post-anesthetic care unit, as well as number of hospital bed-days. Ordinary least-squares regression was used to explore the cost variation. The primary outcome was cost difference in Danish kroner between total abdominal hysterectomy and robotic-assisted laparoscopic hysterectomy. The average cost of consumables was 12,642 Danish kroner more expensive per patient for robotic-assisted laparoscopic hysterectomy than for total abdominal hysterectomy (2014 price level: 1€ = 7.50 Danish kroner). When including all cost-drivers, the analysis showed that the robotic-assisted laparoscopic hysterectomy procedure was 9386 Danish kroner (17%) cheaper than the total abdominal hysterectomy (p = 0.003). When the robot investment was included, the cost difference reduced to 4053 Danish kroner (robotic-assisted laparoscopic hysterectomy was 7% cheaper than total abdominal hysterectomy) (p = 0.20). Increasing age and Type 2 diabetes appeared to influence the overall costs. For women with endometrial cancer or atypical complex hyperplasia, robotic-assisted laparoscopic hysterectomy was cheaper than total abdominal hysterectomy, mostly due to fewer complications and shorter length of hospital stay. © 2015 Nordic Federation of Societies of Obstetrics and Gynecology.

Total thyroidectomy versus hemithyroidectomy for patients with follicular neoplasm. A cost-utility analysis.

PubMed

Corso, C; Gomez, X; Sanabria, A; Vega, V; Dominguez, L C; Osorio, C

2014-01-01

Thyroid nodules are a common condition. Overall, 20% of the nodules assessed with FNAB correspond to the follicular pattern. A partial thyroidectomy is the minimal procedure that should be performed to determine the nature of these nodules. Some authors have suggested performing a total thyroidectomy based on the elimination of reoperation and ultrasound follow-up. The aim of this study was to evaluate the most cost-useful surgical strategy in a patient with an undetermined nodule, assessing complications, reoperation, recurrence and costs. A cost-utility study was designed to compare hemithyroidectomy and total thyroidectomy. The outcomes were complications (definitive RLN palsy, permanent hypoparathyroidism, reoperation for cancer, and recurrence of the disease), direct costs and utility. We used the payer perspective at 5 years. A deterministic and probabilistic sensitivity analysis was completed. In a deterministic analysis, the cost, utility and cost-utility ratio was COP $12.981.801, 44.5 and COP $291.310 for total thyroidectomy and COP $14.309.889, 42.0 and $340.044 for partial thyroidectomy, respectively. The incremental cost-utility ratio was -$535.302 favoring total thyroidectomy. Partial thyroidectomy was more cost-effective when the risks of RLN injury and definitive hypoparathyroidism were greater than 8% and 9% in total thyroidectomy, respectively. In total, 46.8% of the simulations for partial thyroidectomy were located in the quadrant of more costly and less effective. Under a common range of complications, and considering the patient's preference and costs, total thyroidectomy should be selected as the most cost-effective treatment for patients with thyroid nodules and follicular patterns. Copyright © 2014 Surgical Associates Ltd. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Integrated circuit-based instrumentation for microchip capillary electrophoresis.

PubMed

Behnam, M; Kaigala, G V; Khorasani, M; Martel, S; Elliott, D G; Backhouse, C J

2010-09-01

Although electrophoresis with laser-induced fluorescence (LIF) detection has tremendous potential in lab on chip-based point-of-care disease diagnostics, the wider use of microchip electrophoresis has been limited by the size and cost of the instrumentation. To address this challenge, the authors designed an integrated circuit (IC, i.e. a microelectronic chip, with total silicon area of <0.25 cm2, less than 5 mmx5 mm, and power consumption of 28 mW), which, with a minimal additional infrastructure, can perform microchip electrophoresis with LIF detection. The present work enables extremely compact and inexpensive portable systems consisting of one or more complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) chips and several other low-cost components. There are, to the authors' knowledge, no other reports of a CMOS-based LIF capillary electrophoresis instrument (i.e. high voltage generation, switching, control and interface circuit combined with LIF detection). This instrument is powered and controlled using a universal serial bus (USB) interface to a laptop computer. The authors demonstrate this IC in various configurations and can readily analyse the DNA produced by a standard medical diagnostic protocol (end-labelled polymerase chain reaction (PCR) product) with a limit of detection of approximately 1 ng/microl (approximately 1 ng of total DNA). The authors believe that this approach may ultimately enable lab-on-a-chip-based electrophoretic instruments that cost on the order of several dollars.

Segmentation and additive approach: A reliable technique to study noncovalent interactions of large molecules at the surface of single-wall carbon nanotubes.

PubMed

Torres, Ana M; Scheiner, Steve; Roy, Ajit K; Garay-Tapia, Andrés M; Bustamante, John; Kar, Tapas

2016-08-05

This investigation explores a new protocol, named Segmentation and Additive approach (SAA), to study exohedral noncovalent functionalization of single-walled carbon nanotubes with large molecules, such as polymers and biomolecules, by segmenting the entire system into smaller units to reduce computational cost. A key criterion of the segmentation process is the preservation of the molecular structure responsible for stabilization of the entire system in smaller segments. Noncovalent interaction of linoleic acid (LA, C18 H32 O2 ), a fatty acid, at the surface of a (10,0) zigzag nanotube is considered for test purposes. Three smaller segmented models have been created from the full (10,0)-LA system and interaction energies were calculated for these models and compared with the full system at different levels of theory, namely ωB97XD, LDA. The success of this SAA is confirmed as the sum of the interaction energies is in very good agreement with the total interaction energy. Besides reducing computational cost, another merit of SAA is an estimation of the contributions from different sections of the large system to the total interaction energy which can be studied in-depth using a higher level of theory to estimate several properties of each segment. On the negative side, bulk properties, such as HOMO-LUMO (highest occupied molecular orbital - lowest occupied molecular orbital) gap, of the entire system cannot be estimated by adding results from segment models. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Using Amazon's Elastic Compute Cloud to dynamically scale CMS computational resources

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Evans, D.; Fisk, I.; Holzman, B.; Melo, A.; Metson, S.; Pordes, R.; Sheldon, P.; Tiradani, A.

2011-12-01

Large international scientific collaborations such as the Compact Muon Solenoid (CMS) experiment at the Large Hadron Collider have traditionally addressed their data reduction and analysis needs by building and maintaining dedicated computational infrastructure. Emerging cloud computing services such as Amazon's Elastic Compute Cloud (EC2) offer short-term CPU and storage resources with costs based on usage. These services allow experiments to purchase computing resources as needed, without significant prior planning and without long term investments in facilities and their management. We have demonstrated that services such as EC2 can successfully be integrated into the production-computing model of CMS, and find that they work very well as worker nodes. The cost-structure and transient nature of EC2 services makes them inappropriate for some CMS production services and functions. We also found that the resources are not truely "on-demand" as limits and caps on usage are imposed. Our trial workflows allow us to make a cost comparison between EC2 resources and dedicated CMS resources at a University, and conclude that it is most cost effective to purchase dedicated resources for the "base-line" needs of experiments such as CMS. However, if the ability to use cloud computing resources is built into an experiment's software framework before demand requires their use, cloud computing resources make sense for bursting during times when spikes in usage are required.

The economic implications of a multimodal analgesic regimen for patients undergoing major orthopedic surgery: a comparative study of direct costs.

PubMed

Duncan, Christopher M; Hall Long, Kirsten; Warner, David O; Hebl, James R

2009-01-01

Total knee and total hip arthoplasty (THA) are 2 of the most common surgical procedures performed in the United States and represent the greatest single Medicare procedural expenditure. This study was designed to evaluate the economic impact of implementing a multimodal analgesic regimen (Total Joint Regional Anesthesia [TJRA] Clinical Pathway) on the estimated direct medical costs of patients undergoing lower extremity joint replacement surgery. An economic cost comparison was performed on Mayo Clinic patients (n = 100) undergoing traditional total knee or total hip arthroplasty using the TJRA Clinical Pathway. Study patients were matched 1:1 with historical controls undergoing similar procedures using traditional anesthetic (non-TJRA) techniques. Matching criteria included age, sex, surgeon, type of procedure, and American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) physical status (PS) classification. Hospital-based direct costs were collected for each patient and analyzed in standardized inflation-adjusted constant dollars using cost-to-charge ratios, wage indexes, and physician services valued using Medicare reimbursement rates. The estimated mean direct hospital costs were compared between groups, and a subgroup analysis was performed based on ASA PS classification. The estimated mean direct hospital costs were significantly reduced among TJRA patients when compared with controls (cost difference, 1999 dollars; 95% confidence interval, 584-3231 dollars; P = 0.0004). A significant reduction in hospital-based (Medicare Part A) costs accounted for the majority of the total cost savings. Use of a comprehensive, multimodal analgesic regimen (TJRA Clinical Pathway) in patients undergoing lower extremity joint replacement surgery provides a significant reduction in the estimated total direct medical costs. The reduction in mean cost is primarily associated with lower hospital-based (Medicare Part A) costs, with the greatest overall cost difference appearing among patients with significant comorbidities (ASA PS III-IV patients).

Estudio general de la region del Lago Titicaca evaluando en forma preliminar un sistema de analisis interactivo de imagenes multiespectrales

USGS Publications Warehouse

Brockmann, C.E.; Carter, William D.

1976-01-01

ERTS-1 digital data in the form of computer compatible tapes provide the geoscientist with an unusual opportunity to test the maximum flexibility of the satellite system using interactive computers, such as the General Electric Image 100 System. Approximately 9 hours of computer and operator time were used to analyze the Lake Titicaca image, 1443-14073, acquired 9 October 1973. The total area of the lake and associate wetlands was calculated and found to be within 3 percent of previous measurements. The area was subdivided by reflectance characteristics employing cluster analysis of all 4 bands and later compared with density values of band 4. Reflectance variations may be attributed to surface roughness, water depth and bottom characteristics, turbidity, and floating matter. Wetland marsh vegetation, vegetation related to ground-water effluents, natural grasses, and farm crops were separated by cluster analysis. Sandstone, limestone, sand dunes, and several volcanic rock types were similarly separated and displayed by assigned colors and extended through the entire scene. Waste dumps of the Matilde Zinc Mine and smaller mine workings were tentatively identified by signature analysis. Histograms of reflectance values and map printouts were automatically obtained as a record of each of the principal themes. These themes were also stored on a work tape for later display and photographic record as well as to serve in training. The Image 100 System is rapid, extremely flexible and very useful to the investigator in identifying subtle features that may not be noticed by conventional image analysis. The entire scene, which covers 34,225 km2, was analyzed at a scale of 1:600,000, and portions at 1:98,000 and 1:25,000, during a 9-hour period at a rental cost of $250 per hour. Costs to the user can be reduced by restricting its uses to specific areas, objectives, and procedures, rather than undertaking a complete analysis of a total scene.