Shoulder reconstruction after tumor resection by pedicled scapular crest graft.

PubMed

Amin, Sherif N; Ebeid, Walid A

2002-04-01

The current authors present and evaluate a technique for reconstructing proximal humeral defects that result after resection of malignant bone tumors. Sixteen patients were included in this study with an average followup of 3 years (range, 12-76 months). Twelve patients had intraarticular resections, two had extraarticular resections, and two had intercalary resections. Reconstruction was done at the lateral border of the scapula (based on the circumflex scapular vessels) that was osteotomized and mobilized to bridge the resultant defect. Shoulder arthrodesis was done in 14 patients and the shoulder was spared in the two patients who had intercalary resections. Function was evaluated according to the Musculoskeletal Tumor Society scoring system. The average time for union of the graft proximally and distally was 6 months after which the graft started to hypertrophy. The average functional score was 22.5 points (75%) with a minimum score of 18 points (60%) and a maximum score of 27 points (90%). Nonunion of the distal host-graft junction occurred in two patients; both patients required iliac crest bone grafting and both achieved clinical and radiographic union without additional intervention. In three patients, the proximal fixation became loose but had no effect on function. The authors conclude that this technique is inexpensive, effective, and a durable reconstructive option for proximal humeral defects that are less than 15 cm. It has a predictable functional outcome (60%-90%) that is comparable with other reconstructive options.

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

Alam, Ujjaini; Lasue, Jeremie, E-mail: ujjaini.alam@gmail.com, E-mail: jeremie.lasue@irap.omp.eu

We examine three SNe Type Ia datasets: Union2.1, JLA and Panstarrs to check their consistency using cosmology blind statistical analyses as well as cosmological parameter fitting. We find that the Panstarrs dataset is the most stable of the three to changes in the data, although it does not, at the moment, go to high enough redshifts to tightly constrain the equation of state of dark energy, w . The Union2.1, drawn from several different sources, appears to be somewhat susceptible to changes within the dataset. The JLA reconstructs well for a smaller number of cosmological parameters. At higher degrees ofmore » freedom, the dependence of its errors on redshift can lead to varying results between subsets. Panstarrs is inconsistent with the other two datasets at about 2σ confidence level, and JLA and Union2.1 are about 1σ away from each other. For the Ω{sub 0} {sub m} − w cosmological reconstruction, with no additional data, the 1σ range of values in w for selected subsets of each dataset is two times larger for JLA and Union2.1 as compared to Panstarrs. The range in Ω{sub 0} {sub m} for the same subsets remains approximately similar for all three datasets. We find that although there are differences in the fitting and correction techniques used in the different samples, the most important criterion is the selection of the SNe, a slightly different SNe selection can lead to noticeably different results both in the purely statistical analysis and in cosmological reconstruction. We note that a single, high quality low redshift sample could help decrease the uncertainties in the result. We also note that lack of homogeneity in the magnitude errors may bias the results and should either be modeled, or its effect neutralized by using other, complementary datasets. A supernova sample with high quality data at both high and low redshifts, constructed from a few surveys to avoid heterogeneity in the sample, and with homogeneous errors, would result in a more robust cosmological reconstruction.« less

Using external and internal locking plates in a two-stage protocol for treatment of segmental tibial fractures.

PubMed

Ma, Ching-Hou; Tu, Yuan-Kun; Yeh, Jih-Hsi; Yang, Shih-Chieh; Wu, Chin-Hsien

2011-09-01

The tibial segmental fractures usually follow high-energy trauma and are often associated with many complications. We designed a two-stage protocol for these complex injuries. The aim of this study was to assess the outcome of tibial segmental fractures treated according to this protocol. A prospective series of 25 consecutive segmental tibial fractures were treated using a two-stage procedure. In the first stage, a low-profile locking plate was applied as an external fixator to temporarily immobilize the fractures after anatomic reduction had been achieved followed by soft-tissue reconstruction. The second stage involved definitive internal fixation with a locking plate using a minimally invasive percutaneous plate osteosynthesis technique. The median follow-up was 32 months (range, 20-44 months). All fractures achieved union. The median time for the proximal fracture union was 23 weeks (range, 12-30 weeks) and that for distal fracture union was 27 weeks (range, 12-46 weeks; p = 0.08). Functional results were excellent in 21 patients and good in 4 patients. There were three cases of delayed union of distal fracture. Valgus malunion >5 degrees occurred in two patients, and length discrepancy >1 cm was observed in two patients. Pin tract infection occurred in three patients. Use of the two-stage procedure for treatment of segmental tibial fractures is recommended. Surgeons can achieve good reduction with stable temporary fixation, soft-tissue reconstruction, ease of subsequent definitive fixation, and high union rates. Our patients obtained excellent knee and ankle joint motion, good functional outcomes, and a comfortable clinical course.

Reconstruction of Canine Mandibular Bone Defects Using a Bone Transport Reconstruction Plate

PubMed Central

Elsalanty, Mohammed E.; Zakhary, Ibrahim; Akeel, Sara; Benson, Byron; Mulone, Timothy; Triplett, Gilbert R.; Opperman, Lynne A.

2010-01-01

Objectives Reconstruction of mandibular segmental bone defects is a challenging task. This study tests a new device used for reconstructing mandibular defects based on the principle of bone transport distraction osteogenesis. Methods Thirteen beagle dogs were divided into control and experimental groups. In all animals, a 3 cm defect was created on one side of the mandible. In eight control animals, the defect was stabilized with a reconstruction plate without further reconstruction and the animals were sacrificed two to three months after surgery. The remaining five animals were reconstructed with a bone transport reconstruction plate (BTRP), comprising a reconstruction plate with attached intraoral transport unit, and were sacrificed after one month of consolidation. Results Clinical evaluation, cone-beam CT densitometry, three-dimensional histomorphometry, and docking site histology revealed significant new bone formation within the defect in the distracted group. Conclusion The physical dimensions and architectural parameters of the new bone were comparable to the contralateral normal bone. Bone union at the docking site remains a problem. PMID:19770704

Superficial Circumflex Iliac Artery-Based Iliac Bone Flap Transfer for Reconstruction of Bony Defects.

PubMed

Yoshimatsu, Hidehiko; Iida, Takuya; Yamamoto, Takumi; Hayashi, Akitatsu

2018-05-12

 The superficial circumflex iliac artery (SCIA)-based iliac bone flap has yet to be widely used. The purpose of this article is to validate the feasibility of SCIA-based iliac bone flap transfers for reconstruction of small to moderate-sized bony defects. Retrospective outcome comparisons between SCIA-based iliac bone flaps and fibula flaps were made.  Twenty-six patients with bony tissue defects underwent reconstructions using either free SCIA-based iliac bone flaps (13) or fibula flaps (13). Outcomes were evaluated 9 months after the reconstruction on the following basis: bone length, pedicle length, skin paddle area, bone union, donor-site complications, skin paddle survival, and complications at the reconstructed site.  There was no statistically significant difference in pedicle length (iliac bone vs. fibula; 5.5 ± 1.8 vs. 4.1 ± 1.5 cm; p  = 0.181), in bone union rate (iliac bone vs. fibula; 100 vs 92.3%; p  = 0.308), in donor-site complication rate (iliac bone vs. fibula; 0 vs. 7.7%; p  = 0.308), or in skin paddle complete survival rate (iliac bone vs. fibula; 100 vs. 83.3%; p  = 0.125). Statistically significant differences were observed in bone flap length (iliac bone vs. fibula; 4.8 ± 2.2 vs. 11.1 ± 4.8 cm; p  = 0.0005), in skin paddle area (superficial circumflex iliac artery perforator flap vs. peroneal artery perforator flap; 58.8 ± 35.6 vs. 27.7 ± 17.5 cm 2 ; p  = 0.0343), and in reconstructed site complication rate (iliac bone vs. fibula; 0 vs. 30.8%; p  = 0.030).  In our series of SCIA-based iliac bone flap transfers, up to 8 × 3 cm could be procured along the iliac crest. When compared with fibula flap transfers, there were no significant statistical differences in pedicle length or in bone union rate; the SCIA-based iliac bone flap may be a feasible option for bony defects of small to moderate size. Thieme Medical Publishers 333 Seventh Avenue, New York, NY 10001, USA.

12 CFR 701.19 - Benefits for employees of Federal credit unions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... 12 Banks and Banking 6 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Benefits for employees of Federal credit unions... CREDIT UNIONS ORGANIZATION AND OPERATION OF FEDERAL CREDIT UNIONS § 701.19 Benefits for employees of Federal credit unions. (a) General authority. A federal credit union may provide employee benefits...

12 CFR 708b.101 - Mergers generally.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... 12 Banks and Banking 6 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Mergers generally. 708b.101 Section 708b.101 Banks and Banking NATIONAL CREDIT UNION ADMINISTRATION REGULATIONS AFFECTING CREDIT UNIONS MERGERS OF FEDERALLY-INSURED CREDIT UNIONS; VOLUNTARY TERMINATION OR CONVERSION OF INSURED STATUS Mergers § 708b.101...

Vascularised free fibular flap in bone resection and reconstruction.

PubMed

Belt, P J; Dickinson, I C; Theile, D R B

2005-06-01

This paper compares allograft alone and in combination with vascularised free fibular flaps (FFF) to reconstruct long bone defects after tumour excision. We present 33 cases, 21 of these patients had reconstruction with an allograft alone as the initial procedure. Nine patients underwent reconstruction with FFF plus allograft plus iliac crest bone graft (ICG), two patients underwent reconstruction with a FFF and ICG and one patient underwent reconstruction with an allograft, a pedicled fibular flap and a FFF. The allograft was obtained from the Queensland Bone Bank and had been irradiated to 25 000Gy. In our experience (N=21) the complication rates with allograft alone were: delayed union 3, nonunion 7, fractured allograft 6, infection requiring resection of the allograft 3, other infections 2. The revision rate was 48% (10 cases of which five required a free fibular flap) and an average of 1.8 revision procedures were required. In the lower limb cases, the mean time to full weightbearing was 20 months and 40% were full weightbearing at 18 months. We felt that the high complication rate compared with other series may have been related to the irradiation of the graft. FFFs were used in 18 cases, 12 cases were primary reconstructions and six were revision reconstructions. The mean fibular length was 19.4 cm (range 10-29 cm). There were no flap losses and the FFF united at both ends of 11 of 12 primary reconstruction cases. One case had nonunion at one end, giving a union rate of 96% (23 of 24 junctions). When a FFF was used in combination with an allograft as a primary reconstruction, the allograft nonunion rate was 50% (five of 10 cases). The mean time to full weightbearing in the lower limb cases was 7.5 months and 100% were full weightbearing at 18 months. The FFF hastens time to full weightbearing but does not appear to affect the complication rates of allograft. The number of revision procedures required is reduced in the presence of a FFF and is the latter is a useful technique for the salvage of refractory cases.

Reconstruction of Extensive Soft-Tissue Defects with Concomitant Bone Defects in the Lower Extremity with the Latissimus Dorsi-Serratus Anterior-Rib Free Flap.

PubMed

Sia, Wei Tee; Xu, Germaine Guiqin; Puhaindran, Mark Edward; Tan, Bien Keem; Cheng, Mathew Hern Wang; Chew, Winston Yoon Chong

2015-07-01

The combined latissimus dorsi-serratus anterior-rib (LD-SA-rib) free flap provides a large soft-tissue flap with a vascularized bone flap through a solitary vascular pedicle in a one-stage reconstruction. Seven LD-SA-rib free flaps were performed in seven patients to reconstruct concomitant bone and extensive soft-tissue defects in the lower extremity (tibia, five; femur, one; foot, one). The patients were all male, with an average age of 34 years (range, 20-48 years). These defects were secondary to trauma in five patients and posttraumatic osteomyelitis in two patients. All flaps survived and achieved bony union. The average time to bony union was 9.4 months. Bone hypertrophy of at least 20% occurred in all flaps. All patients achieved full weight-bearing ambulation without aid at an average duration of 23.7 months. Two patients developed stress fractures of the rib flap. There was no significant donor site morbidity, except for two patients who had pleural tears during harvesting of the flap. The LD-SA-rib flap provides a large soft-tissue component and a vascularized bone flap for reconstruction of composite large soft-tissue defects with concomitant bone defects of the lower extremity in a one-stage procedure. Thieme Medical Publishers 333 Seventh Avenue, New York, NY 10001, USA.

[Application of joint reconstruction with autogenous coronoid process graft to treat temporomandibular joint ankylosis].

PubMed

Xie, Qing-tiao; Huang, Xuan-ping; Jiang, Xian-fang; Yang, Yuan-yuan; Li, Hua; Lin, Xi

2013-08-01

To evaluate the clinical effect of joint reconstruction by using autogenous coronoid process graft to treat temporomandibular joint(TMJ) ankylosis. Nine cases of TMJ ankylosis from September 2008 to September 2010 were surgically treated by joint reconstruction with autogenous coronoid process graft, using autogenous articular disc or prosthodontic membrane as interpositional material. Mouth opening, occlusion and cone beam CT(CBCT) were used for evaluation before and after surgery. Satisfactory mouth opening was achieved in all patients and no one got occlusal changes or reankylosis during follow-up. CBCT showed that coronoid process graft reached bone union with the ramus and turned to be round. It is effective to cure TMJ ankylosis through joint reconstruction with autogenous coronoid process graft.

Gluteal muscle attachment during proximal femoral reconstruction in a canine model.

PubMed

Pluhar, G Elizabeth; Manley, Paul A; Heiner, John P; Vanderby, Ray; Markel, Mark D

2007-02-01

In this 18 month in vivo canine study we compared three methods of attaching the gluteal muscles to the proximal femur during hip reconstruction with an allograft-prosthesis composite (APC). All three methods are commonly practiced in human hip revision surgery and data on their effectiveness in dogs is directly relevant to human treatment. The methods compared were host gluteal tendon sutured to allograft tendon, host greater trochanter apposed to allograft using a cable grip system, and host cortical bone shells around the allograft secured with cerclage wires. For each method, we assessed changes in allograft-host bone fusion, weight bearing, gluteal muscle mass, and structural properties through qualitative radiography, gait analysis, histology, and biomechanical testing. Hip reconstruction using the WRAP method resulted in the greatest limb use with complete resolution of gluteal muscle atrophy 18 months after surgery. This method yielded a stronger, more stable hip joint that allowed for more normal limb function. These hips had the more rapid rate of bony union at the host bone-allograft junction and little resorption of the graft. The increased limb use and resultant larger gluteal muscle mass conferred to the WRAP hip composites the greatest tensile strength and stiffness when tested 18 months after reconstruction. There was a large amount of new bone formation on the periosteal surface where the WRAP reconstructions had an overlay of live bone that resulted in a more rapid union and increased cortical width at the level of the osteotomy. New bone also penetrated into the allograft a greater distance from the osteotomy in the WRAP group.

Communist coalmining union activists and postwar reconstruction, 1945-52: Germany, Poland, and Britain

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

Fishman, N.; Prazmowska, A.J.; Heith, H.

2006-01-15

The demand for coal in war-torn Europe after VE Day gave coalmining trade unions unprecedented bargaining leverage. Miners' incomes had been depressed throughout the interwar period, and they were now anxious to recover their past high wages and improve their conditions. In several key European countries, Communists were prominent among the leadership of mining trade unions. Communist miners' leaders Willi Agatz, Edward Gierek and Arthur Horner each faced unprecedented opportunities and challenges at the onset of the Cold War in 1948, as they sought to fuse their parallel identities as committed and influential Communists and as conscientious trade union negotiatorsmore » in these newly advantageous circumstances. Each of these three 'revolutionary' trade unionists pursued strategies that revived the position of miners, without undermining the potential for economic recovery in their respective countries - for which an uninterrupted supply of coal remained critical. A comparative study of the personal and political experiences of the three Communist miners' leaders enhances our understanding of the evolution of Communist trade unionism in the early postwar period.« less

New Roles for Teachers Unions? Reform Unionism in School Decentralization

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Donaldson, Morgaen L.; Mayer, Anysia P.; Cobb, Casey D.; LeChasseur, Kimberly; Welton, Anjale

2013-01-01

Of late, teachers unions have worked together with district management in new and notable ways. This paper examines the role of teachers unions in shaping the Together Initiative (TI), which seeks to increase autonomy and broaden decision making in urban schools in one northeastern state. In general, state-level union leaders have taken more…

Reconstructing the interaction between dark energy and dark matter using Gaussian processes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yang, Tao; Guo, Zong-Kuan; Cai, Rong-Gen

2015-06-01

We present a nonparametric approach to reconstruct the interaction between dark energy and dark matter directly from SNIa Union 2.1 data using Gaussian processes, which is a fully Bayesian approach for smoothing data. In this method, once the equation of state (w ) of dark energy is specified, the interaction can be reconstructed as a function of redshift. For the decaying vacuum energy case with w =-1 , the reconstructed interaction is consistent with the standard Λ CDM model, namely, there is no evidence for the interaction. This also holds for the constant w cases from -0.9 to -1.1 and for the Chevallier-Polarski-Linder (CPL) parametrization case. If the equation of state deviates obviously from -1 , the reconstructed interaction exists at 95% confidence level. This shows the degeneracy between the interaction and the equation of state of dark energy when they get constraints from the observational data.

Delayed Union of a Sacral Fracture: Percutaneous Navigated Autologous Cancellous Bone Grafting and Screw Fixation

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

Huegli, R. W.; Messmer, P.; Jacob, A. L.

2003-09-15

Delayed or non-union of a sacral fracture is a serious clinical condition that may include chronic pain, sitting discomfort, gait disturbances, neurological problems, and inability to work. It is also a difficult reconstruction problem. Late correction of the deformity is technically more demanding than the primary treatment of acute pelvic injuries. Open reduction, internal fixation (ORIF), excision of scar tissue, and bone grafting often in a multi-step approach are considered to be the treatment of choice in delayed unions of the pelvic ring. This procedure implies the risk of neurological and vascular injuries, infection, repeated failure of union, incomplete correctionmore » of the deformity, and incomplete pain relief as the most important complications. We report a new approach for minimally invasive treatment of a delayed union of the sacrum without vertical displacement. A patient who suffered a Malgaigne fracture (Tile C1.3) was initially treated with closed reduction and percutaneous screw fixation (CRPF) of the posterior pelvic ring under CT navigation and plating of the anterior pelvic ring. Three months after surgery he presented with increasing hip pain caused by a delayed union of the sacral fracture. The lesion was successfully treated percutaneously in a single step procedure using CT navigation for drilling of the delayed union, autologous bone grafting, and screw fixation.« less

Cartesian critters can't remember.

PubMed

Curry, Devin Sanchez

2018-06-01

Descartes held the following view of declarative memory: to remember is to reconstruct an idea that you intellectually recognize as a reconstruction. Descartes countenanced two overarching varieties of declarative memory. To have an intellectual memory is to intellectually reconstruct a universal idea that you recognize as a reconstruction, and to have a sensory memory is to neurophysiologically reconstruct a particular idea that you recognize as a reconstruction. Sensory remembering is thus a capacity of neither ghosts nor machines, but only of human beings qua mind-body unions. This interpretation unifies Descartes's various remarks (and conspicuous silences) about remembering, from the 1628 Rules for the Direction of the Mind through the suppressed-in-1633 Treatise of Man to the 1649 Passions of the Soul. It also rebuts a prevailing thesis in the current secondary literature-that Cartesian critters can remember-while incorporating the textual evidence for that thesis-Descartes's detailed descriptions of the corporeal mechanisms that construct sensory memories. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Allografts with autogenous platelet-rich plasma for tibial defect reconstruction: a rabbit study.

PubMed

Nather, Aziz; Wong, Keng Lin; David, Vikram; Pereira, Barry P

2012-12-01

To evaluate the effect of autogenous platelet-rich plasma (PRP) for fresh-frozen allografts in tibial defect reconstruction in rabbits. 40 adult New Zealand white rabbits underwent tibial defect reconstruction with autografts (n=12), allografts without PRP (n=12), or allografts with PRP (n=12) and were observed for 12, 16, and 24 weeks (4 for each period). Tibias of the remaining 4 rabbits were used as donor allografts, and the remaining allografts were procured from recipient rabbits. A 1.5- cm cortical segment of the tibia was osteotomised, and then fixed with a 9-hole mini-compression plate and 2 cerclage wires. Allografts were stripped off the periosteum and soft tissues and medullary contents, and then stored in a freezer at -80 ºC. All allografts were deep frozen for at least 4 weeks before transplantation. 7 ml of whole blood was drawn to prepare 1 ml of PRP. The PRP was then mixed with 1.0 ml of human thrombin to form a platelet gel. The PRP gel was then packed into the medullary canal of the allograft and applied on the cortical surface before tibial defect reconstruction. Rabbits were sacrificed at 12, 16, and 24 weeks. The specimens were assessed for bone union at host-graft junctions and for bone resorption, new bone formation, callus encasement, and viable osteocyte counts. There were 4 specimens in each group at each observation period. Osteoid bridging the gap at host-graft junctions was noted in all specimens in the autograft and allograft-with-PRP groups at week 12 and in the allograft-without-PRP group at week 24. Bone union in allografts without PRP was delayed. All indices for biological incorporation (resorption index, new bone formation index, callus encasement index, and viable osteocyte count) were significantly greater in the autograft than allograft-without-PRP groups, except for the resorption index at week 24, whereas the differences were not significant between the autograft and allograft-with-PRP groups. The differences between the 2 allograft groups were usually not significant, except for the resorption index. PRP-augmented allografts behaved similarly to autografts for tibial defect reconstruction in rabbits. PRP increased bone union and bone resorption.

My Education in Ukraine

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Matiash, Ludmila

2007-01-01

After the disintegration of the Soviet Union in the early 1990s, Ukraine and other Newly Independent States were invaded by armies of consultants from Western donor organizations. Development agencies like the World Bank, the United States Agency for International Development, Tacis, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, and the…

Unions, Vitamins, Exercise: Unionized Graduate Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dewberry, David R.

2005-01-01

After the turbulent labor history of America in the early to mid twentieth century, there has been a general decline of unions. Nevertheless, many graduate school teaching assistants are unionizing in attempts to gain better pay and benefits and remove themselves from an "Ivory Sweatshop." This article discusses a history of unions…

Reconstruction of segmental bone defect of long bones after tumor resection by devitalized tumor-bearing bone.

PubMed

Qu, Huayi; Guo, Wei; Yang, Rongli; Li, Dasen; Tang, Shun; Yang, Yi; Dong, Sen; Zang, Jie

2015-09-24

The reconstruction of an intercalary bone defect after a tumor resection of a long bone remains a challenge to orthopedic surgeons. Though several methods have been adopted to enhance the union of long segmental allografts or retrieved segmental autografts to the host bones, still more progresses are required to achieve a better union rate. Several methods have been adopted to devitalize tumor bone for recycling usage, and the results varied. We describe our experiences of using devitalized tumor-bearing bones for the repairing of segmental defects after tumor resection. Twenty-seven eligible patients treated from February 2004 to May 2012 were included. The segmental tumor bone (mean length, 14 cm) was resected, and then devitalized in 20% sterile saline at 65 °C for 30 min after the tumor tissue was removed. The devitalized bone was implanted back into the defect by using nails or plates. Complete healing of 50 osteotomy ends was achieved at a median time of 11 months (interquartile range (IQR) 9-13 months). Major complications included bone nonunion in four bone junctions (7.4%), devitalized bone fracture in one patient (3.7%), deep infection in three patients (11.1%), and fixation failure in two patients (7.4%). The bone union rates at 1 and 2 years were 74.1 and 92.6%, respectively. The average functional score according to the Musculoskeletal Tumor Society (MSTS) 93 scoring system was 93 % (IQR 80-96.7%). Incubation in 20% sterile saline at 65 °C for 30 min is an effective method of devitalization of tumor-bearing bone. The retrieved bone graft may provide as a less expensive alternative for limb salvage. The structural bone and the preserved osteoinductivity of protein may improve bone union.

Perestroyka in the Soviet Union. Occasional Paper No. 128.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Makhmoutov, Mirza Ismail

This document presents the point of view that although socialism has produced benefits for the USSR, Soviet society has undertaken its own radical reconstruction. History shows that the natural basis of changes in every society tends to be objective technological revolutions. The first technological revolution was agrarian. The second was…

Lindsay and the German Universities: An Oxford Contribution to the Post-War Reform Debate.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Phillips, David

1980-01-01

Discusses British involvement in educational reconstruction in Germany after World War II and the influence of Lord Lindsay of Birker in setting up the Royal Commission. The Commission consisted of German representatives from institutions of higher education, trade unions, churches, and the land authorities. (KC)

Albania’s Road Toward Integrated and Accession into the European Union

DTIC Science & Technology

2014-06-13

50 vii Regional issues and international obligations ........................................................51...88 viii ACRONYMS AI Amnesty International APL Albanian Party of Labor CARDS Community Assistance for Reconstruction, Development...IMF International Monetary Fund IPA Instrument for Pre-accession assistance MEI Ministry of European Integration MFA Ministry of Foreign Affairs

The union doctor

PubMed Central

Bloor, D. U.

1980-01-01

The appointment, terms of service, and work of the Poor Law medical officer, the union doctor, is described to illustrate one of the roles of the mid-nineteenth century general practitioner. It was this role which laid the foundation of modern general practice. PMID:6997483

Bilateral Distraction Osteogenesis of Vascularized Iliac Crest Free Flaps Used in Mandibular Reconstruction

PubMed Central

Subramaniam, Shiva S.; Vujcich, Nathan J.; Nastri, Alf L.

2016-01-01

Summary: Vascularized free flaps have become the gold standard in reconstructing large segmental mandibular defects; however, even when bony union and soft-tissue coverage is achieved, insufficient bone stock and altered facial contour can create functional and cosmetic problems for the patient. There have been limited case reports on the use of secondary distraction osteogenesis to address these issues. The authors report a case of bilateral mandibular distraction of deep circumflex iliac artery free flaps, used for mandibular reconstruction after total mandibulectomy for treatment of osteosarcoma. Performed for reasons of retrognathia and facilitation of dental prosthetic rehabilitation, this is the first case of bilateral horizontal distraction osteogenesis of deep circumflex iliac artery free flaps reported in the literature. PMID:27257565

12 CFR 704.9 - Liquidity management.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-01-01

... and Banking NATIONAL CREDIT UNION ADMINISTRATION REGULATIONS AFFECTING CREDIT UNIONS CORPORATE CREDIT UNIONS § 704.9 Liquidity management. (a) General. In the management of liquidity, a corporate credit... obligations; (4) Demonstrate that the accounting classification of investment securities is consistent with...

12 CFR 704.9 - Liquidity management.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-01-01

... and Banking NATIONAL CREDIT UNION ADMINISTRATION REGULATIONS AFFECTING CREDIT UNIONS CORPORATE CREDIT UNIONS § 704.9 Liquidity management. (a) General. In the management of liquidity, a corporate credit... obligations; (4) Demonstrate that the accounting classification of investment securities is consistent with...

12 CFR 704.9 - Liquidity management.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-01-01

... and Banking NATIONAL CREDIT UNION ADMINISTRATION REGULATIONS AFFECTING CREDIT UNIONS CORPORATE CREDIT UNIONS § 704.9 Liquidity management. (a) General. In the management of liquidity, a corporate credit... obligations; (4) Demonstrate that the accounting classification of investment securities is consistent with...

Global change: Geographical approaches (A Review)*

PubMed Central

Kotlyakov, V. M.; Mather, J. R.; Sdasyuk, G. V.; White, G. F.

1988-01-01

The International Geosphere Biosphere Program sponsored by the International Council of Scientific Unions is directing attention to geophysical and biological change as influenced by human modifications in global energy and mass exchanges. Geographers in the Soviet Union and the United States have joined in critical appraisal of their experience in studying environmental change. This initial report is on some promising approaches, such as the reconstruction of earlier landscape processes, modeling of the dynamics of present-day landscapes, analysis of causes and consequences of anthropogenic changes in specified regions, appraisal of social response to change, and enhanced geographic information systems supported by detailed site studies. PMID:16593971

A-Frame free Vascularized Fibular Graft and Femoral Lengthening for Osteosarcoma Pediatric Patients.

PubMed

Cashin, Megan; Coombs, Christopher; Torode, Ian

2018-02-01

Pediatric limb reconstruction after resection of a malignant tumor presents specific challenges. Multiple surgical techniques have been used to treat these patients. This paper describes a staged surgical technique for the reconstruction of large distal femoral defects due to tumor resection in skeletally immature patients. Three pediatric patients with osteosarcoma of the distal femur underwent staged reconstruction. Neoadjuvant chemotherapy was followed by en bloc tumor resection and immediate reconstruction of the distal femoral defect with a vascularized free fibular autograft utilizing a unique A-frame construct combined with intramedullary nail fixation. The second stage was a planned gradual lengthening of the healed construct, over a custom-made magnetically driven expandable intramedullary nail. All patients achieved bony union and satisfactory length with minimal complications. The patients all returned to full, unlimited physical activities. The early results confirm that the described technique is a safe and reliable procedure for the reconstruction of large femoral defects in pediatric patients with osteosarcoma. Level IV-therapeutic.

12 CFR 704.9 - Liquidity management.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-01-01

... and Banking NATIONAL CREDIT UNION ADMINISTRATION REGULATIONS AFFECTING CREDIT UNIONS CORPORATE CREDIT UNIONS § 704.9 Liquidity management. (a) General. In the management of liquidity, a corporate credit... accounting classification of investment securities is consistent with its ability to meet potential liquidity...

12 CFR 704.9 - Liquidity management.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... and Banking NATIONAL CREDIT UNION ADMINISTRATION REGULATIONS AFFECTING CREDIT UNIONS CORPORATE CREDIT UNIONS § 704.9 Liquidity management. (a) General. In the management of liquidity, a corporate credit... accounting classification of investment securities is consistent with its ability to meet potential liquidity...

Management of Sacral Tumors Requiring Spino-Pelvic Reconstruction with Different Histopathologic Diagnosis: Evaluation with Four Cases

PubMed Central

Togral, Guray; Hasturk, Askin Esen; Kekec, Fevzi; Parpucu, Murat; Gungor, Safak

2015-01-01

In this retrospective study, surgical results of four patients with sacral tumors having disparate pathologic diagnoses, who were treated with partial or total sacrectomy and lumbopelvic stabilization were abstracted. Two patients were treated with partial sacral resection and two patients were treated with total sacrectomy and spinopelvic fixation. Fixation methods included spinopelvic fixation with rods and screws in two cases, reconstruction plate in one case, and fresh frozen allografts in two cases. Fibular allografts used for reconstruction accelerated bony union and enhanced the stability in two cases. Addition of polymethyl methacrylate in the cavity in the case of a giant cell tumor had a positive stabilizing effect on fixation. As a result, we can conclude that mechanical instability after sacral resection can be stabilized securely with lumbopelvic fixation and polymethyl methacrylate application or addition of fresh frozen allografts between the rods can augment the stability of the reconstruction. PMID:26713133

Management of Sacral Tumors Requiring Spino-Pelvic Reconstruction with Different Histopathologic Diagnosis: Evaluation with Four Cases.

PubMed

Arıkan, Murat; Togral, Guray; Hasturk, Askin Esen; Kekec, Fevzi; Parpucu, Murat; Gungor, Safak

2015-12-01

In this retrospective study, surgical results of four patients with sacral tumors having disparate pathologic diagnoses, who were treated with partial or total sacrectomy and lumbopelvic stabilization were abstracted. Two patients were treated with partial sacral resection and two patients were treated with total sacrectomy and spinopelvic fixation. Fixation methods included spinopelvic fixation with rods and screws in two cases, reconstruction plate in one case, and fresh frozen allografts in two cases. Fibular allografts used for reconstruction accelerated bony union and enhanced the stability in two cases. Addition of polymethyl methacrylate in the cavity in the case of a giant cell tumor had a positive stabilizing effect on fixation. As a result, we can conclude that mechanical instability after sacral resection can be stabilized securely with lumbopelvic fixation and polymethyl methacrylate application or addition of fresh frozen allografts between the rods can augment the stability of the reconstruction.

Tracking Progress, Engaging Communities: Abbott Indicators Summary Report--Union City, New Jersey

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hirsch, Lesley; Applewhite-Coney, Erain

2005-01-01

Union City is one of 31 urban school districts in New Jersey known as Abbott districts. As an Abbott district, Union City receives funding to equalize its per student general education budget with the most successful suburban districts in the state. Through a series of indicators, the Union City Abbott Indicators Report presents the status of…

Tracking Progress, Engaging Communities: Abbott Indicators Technical Report: Union City, New Jersey

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Applewhite-Coney, Erain; Hirsch, Lesley

2005-01-01

Union City is one of 31 urban school districts in New Jersey known as Abbott districts. As an Abbott district, Union City receives funding to equalize its per student general education budget with the most successful suburban districts in the state. Through a series of indicators, the Union City Abbott Indicators Report presents the status of…

12 CFR 702.2 - Definitions

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... retained earnings balance of the credit union at quarter-end as determined under generally accepted... assets, at the point of acquisition. A mutual combination is a transaction in which a credit union... credit union's total assets as measured by either— (i) Average quarterly balance. The average of quarter...

75 FR 75648 - Corporate Credit Unions

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2010-12-06

... Board, National Credit Union Administration, 1775 Duke Street, Alexandria, Virginia 22314- 3428. Hand... library at 1775 Duke Street, Alexandria, Virginia 22314, by appointment weekdays between 9 a.m. and 3 p.m... Attorney, Office of General Counsel; and Lisa Henderson, Staff Attorney, Office of General Counsel, at the...

12 CFR 711.6 - General exemption.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... 12 Banks and Banking 6 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false General exemption. 711.6 Section 711.6 Banks and Banking NATIONAL CREDIT UNION ADMINISTRATION REGULATIONS AFFECTING CREDIT UNIONS MANAGEMENT... are members of a minority group or women; (3) Is a depository institution that has been chartered for...

12 CFR 707.3 - General disclosure requirements.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... 12 Banks and Banking 6 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false General disclosure requirements. 707.3 Section 707.3 Banks and Banking NATIONAL CREDIT UNION ADMINISTRATION REGULATIONS AFFECTING CREDIT UNIONS TRUTH... consent and other applicable provisions of the Electronic Signatures in Global and National Commerce Act...

Tissue engineering rib with the incorporation of biodegradable polymer cage and BMSCs/decalcified bone: an experimental study in a canine model.

PubMed

Tang, Hua; Wu, Bin; Qin, Xiong; Zhang, Lu; Kretlow, Jim; Xu, Zhifei

2013-05-20

The reconstruction of large bone defects, including rib defects, remains a challenge for surgeons. In this study, we used biodegradable polydioxanone (PDO) cages to tissue engineer ribs for the reconstruction of 4cm-long costal defects. PDO sutures were used to weave 6cm long and 1cm diameter cages. Demineralized bone matrix (DBM) which is a xenograft was molded into cuboids and seeded with second passage bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells (BMSCs) that had been osteogenically induced. Two DBM cuboids seeded with BMSCs were put into the PDO cage and used to reconstruct the costal defects. Radiographic examination including 3D reconstruction, histologic examination and mechanical test was performed after 24 postoperative weeks. All the experimental subjects survived. In all groups, the PDO cage had completely degraded after 24 weeks and been replaced by fibrous tissue. Better shape and radian were achieved in PDO cages filled with DBM and BMSCs than in the other two groups (cages alone, or cages filled with acellular DBM cuboids). When the repaired ribs were subjected to an outer force, the ribs in the PDO cage/DBMs/BMSCs group kept their original shape while ribs in the other two groups deformed. In the PDO cage/DBMs/BMSCs groups, we also observed bony union at all the construct interfaces while there was no bony union observed in the other two groups. This result was also confirmed by radiographic and histologic examination. This study demonstrates that biodegradable PDO cage in combination with two short BMSCs/DBM cuboids can repair large rib defects. The satisfactory repair rate suggests that this might be a feasible approach for large bone repair.

Tissue engineering rib with the incorporation of biodegradable polymer cage and BMSCs/decalcified bone: an experimental study in a canine model

PubMed Central

2013-01-01

Background The reconstruction of large bone defects, including rib defects, remains a challenge for surgeons. In this study, we used biodegradable polydioxanone (PDO) cages to tissue engineer ribs for the reconstruction of 4cm-long costal defects. Methods PDO sutures were used to weave 6cm long and 1cm diameter cages. Demineralized bone matrix (DBM) which is a xenograft was molded into cuboids and seeded with second passage bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells (BMSCs) that had been osteogenically induced. Two DBM cuboids seeded with BMSCs were put into the PDO cage and used to reconstruct the costal defects. Radiographic examination including 3D reconstruction, histologic examination and mechanical test was performed after 24 postoperative weeks. Results All the experimental subjects survived. In all groups, the PDO cage had completely degraded after 24 weeks and been replaced by fibrous tissue. Better shape and radian were achieved in PDO cages filled with DBM and BMSCs than in the other two groups (cages alone, or cages filled with acellular DBM cuboids). When the repaired ribs were subjected to an outer force, the ribs in the PDO cage/DBMs/BMSCs group kept their original shape while ribs in the other two groups deformed. In the PDO cage/DBMs/BMSCs groups, we also observed bony union at all the construct interfaces while there was no bony union observed in the other two groups. This result was also confirmed by radiographic and histologic examination. Conclusions This study demonstrates that biodegradable PDO cage in combination with two short BMSCs/DBM cuboids can repair large rib defects. The satisfactory repair rate suggests that this might be a feasible approach for large bone repair. PMID:23688344

On Being Guided--A Typology of Career Guidance in EU Discourses

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Schröder, Christian; Karl, Ute

2017-01-01

With this article we want to illustrate how the central publications of the European Union legitimate a role of Career Guidance Services (CGS) that help in establishing a desired form of social order. Using the Sociology of Knowledge Approach to Discourse, we reconstructed four typical metaphorical conceptualisations of CGS that go along with…

East Asia: Southeast Asia

DTIC Science & Technology

1990-09-05

Bangladesh to the Union of Myanmar [Burma] Mr Mostafa Faruque Mohammed at the Ministry of Trade at 9 am today. Director-General of the Trade...of the mass organizations such as that of the LPRYU [Lao People’s Revolutionary Youth Union ] of Savannkhet Province with the Ho Chi Minh Communist...Province and that between the Lao Trade Unions of Savannakhet Province and the Vietnamese Trade Unions of Quang Tri Province. In past years the

Planning a College Union Building.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Berry, Chester Arthur

This volume examines the background and characteristics of the college union and its buildings, discusses its purposes and the means by which they may be achieved, and considers the impact of these means on the building requirements. General planning principles are developed and applied to the union building and its various areas. The translation…

EU Employment and Social Policy, 1999-2001: Jobs, Cohesion, Productivity.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Commission of the European Communities, Brussels (Belgium). Directorate-General for Employment and Social Affairs.

This document examines employment and social policy in the European Union in 1999-2001. The document begins with an interview with Anna Diamantopoulou, the European Union's commissioner for employment and social affairs and the paper "Balancing Jobs, Cohesion, and Productivity" by Odile Quintin, the European Union's director-general for…

Allograft-Prosthetic Composite Reconstruction for Massive Proximal Humeral Bone Loss in Reverse Shoulder Arthroplasty.

PubMed

Sanchez-Sotelo, Joaquin; Wagner, Eric R; Sim, Franklin H; Houdek, Matthew T

2017-12-20

Reverse total shoulder arthroplasty (RTSA) performed in the setting of massive proximal humeral bone loss often requires special reconstructive techniques. Restoration of the proximal part of the humerus with an allograft provides a number of theoretical benefits, including implant support, restoration of humeral length, deltoid tensioning, and an opportunity to repair the posterior aspect of the cuff to improve strength in external rotation and repair of the subscapularis to improve stability. However, reverse allograft-prosthesis composites (APCs) are costly, are technically demanding to use, and can be compromised by progressive allograft resorption. Between 2005 and 2012, the lead author used an APC reconstruction in 8 primary and 18 revision RTSAs (26 patients; mean age, 62 years; mean body mass index, 27.9 kg/m). The indications for the primary RTSAs included severe proximal humeral bone loss after trauma (n = 5) and tumor resection (n = 3). The indications in the revision setting were failed hemiarthroplasty (n = 11), anatomic total shoulder arthroplasty (n = 4), and reverse arthroplasty (n = 3). The most common reason for revision was instability (n = 10). A compression plate was used for graft-to-host fixation in all shoulders. Shoulders were assessed for pain, motion, American Shoulder and Elbow Surgeons (ASES) score, Simple Shoulder Test (SST) score, Neer score, revision or reoperation, radiographic evidence of graft union or resorption, and implant fixation. The mean duration of follow-up was 4 years (range, 2 to 10 years). RTSA using an APC construct resulted in substantial improvements in pain scores (p < 0.0001), elevation (p < 0.0001), and external rotation (p = 0.004). With the numbers available, there were no significant differences in clinical outcomes between primary and revision cases. No patients required revision surgery for nonunion at the host-allograft junction. The mean time to union was 7 months, with 1 patient requiring bone-grafting for delayed union. Other complications included dislocation, deep infection, graft fracture, and periprosthetic fracture distal to the previous APC construct in 1 patient each. The 2 and 5-year revision-free survival rate was 96%. Reconstruction of proximal humeral bone loss with an APC at the time of primary or revision RTSA is safe and effective, with acceptable functional outcomes and complication rates. Therapeutic Level IV. See Instructions for Authors for a complete description of levels of evidence.

Adjustment Issues Affecting Employment for Immigrants from the Former Soviet Union.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Yost, Anastasia Dimun; Lucas, Margaretha S.

2002-01-01

Describes major issues, including culture shock and loss of status, that affect general adjustment of immigrants and refugees from the former Soviet Union who are resettling in the United States. Issues that affect career and employment adjustment are described and the interrelatedness of general and career issues is explored. (Contains 39…

Does Wrist Arthrodesis With Structural Iliac Crest Bone Graft After Wide Resection of Distal Radius Giant Cell Tumor Result in Satisfactory Function and Local Control?

PubMed

Wang, Tao; Chan, Chung Ming; Yu, Feng; Li, Yuan; Niu, Xiaohui

2017-03-01

Many techniques have been described for reconstruction after distal radius resection for giant cell tumor with none being clearly superior. The favored technique at our institution is total wrist fusion with autogenous nonvascularized structural iliac crest bone graft because it is structurally robust, avoids the complications associated with obtaining autologous fibula graft, and is useful in areas where bone banks are not available. However, the success of arthrodesis and the functional outcomes with this approach, to our knowledge, have only been limitedly reported. (1) What is the success of union of these grafts and how long does it take? (2) How effective is the technique in achieving tumor control? (3) What complications occur with this type of arthrodesis? (4) What are the functional results of wrist arthrodesis by this technique for treating giant cell tumor of the distal radius? Between 2005 and 2013, 48 patients were treated for biopsy-confirmed Campanacci Grade III giant cell tumor of the distal radius. Of those, 39 (81% [39 of 48]) were treated with wrist arthrodesis using autogenous nonvascularized iliac crest bone graft. Of those, 27 (69% [27 of 39]) were available for followup at a minimum of 24 months (mean, 45 months; range, 24-103 months). During that period, the general indications for this approach were Campanacci Grade III and estimated resection length of 8 cm or less. Followup included clinical and radiographic assessment and functional assessment using the Disabilities of the Arm, Shoulder and Hand (DASH) score, the Musculoskeletal Tumor Society (MSTS) score, grip strength, and range of motion at every followup by the treating surgeon and his team. All functional results were from the latest followup of each patient. Union of the distal junction occurred at a mean of 4 months (± 2 months) and union of the proximal junction occurred at a mean of 9 months (± 5 months). Accounting for competing events, at 12 months, the rate of proximal junction union was 56% (95% confidence interval [CI], 35%-72%), whereas it was 67% (95% CI, 45%-82%) at 18 months. In total, 11 of the 27 patients (41%) underwent repeat surgery on the distal radius, including eight patients (30%) who had complications and three (11%) who had local recurrence. The mean DASH score was 9 (± 7) (value range, 0-100, with lower scores representing better function), and the mean MSTS 1987 score was 29 (± 1) (value range, 0-30, with higher scores representing better function) as well as 96% (± 4%) of mean MSTS 1993 score (value range, 0%-100%, with higher scores representing better function). The mean grip strength was 51% (± 23%) of the uninvolved side, whereas the mean arc of forearm rotation was 113° (± 49°). Reconstruction of defects after resection of giant cell tumor of the distal radius with autogenous structural iliac crest bone graft is a facile technique that can be used to achieve favorable functional results with complications and recurrences comparable to those of other reported techniques. We cannot show that this technique is superior to other options, but it seems to be a reasonable option to consider when other reconstruction options such as allografts are not available. Level IV, therapeutic study.

Randomized prospective study comparing tri-cortical iliac crest autograft to allograft in the lateral column lengthening component for operative correction of adult acquired flatfoot deformity.

PubMed

Dolan, Christopher M; Henning, Jeffrey A; Anderson, John G; Bohay, Donald R; Kornmesser, Marc J; Endres, Terrence J

2007-01-01

Operative treatment of stage II posterior tibial tendon insufficiency (PTTI) is controversial. Many soft-tissue and bony procedures and various combinations of the two have been reported for treatment of stage II PTTI. Orthopaedists recognize the lateral column lengthening component of the procedure as a successful reconstructive technique. The use of cortical allograft for lateral column lengthening in the correction of pes planus in the pediatric patient population has been routine. In the adult population, however, tricortical iliac crest autograft has been the bone graft of choice. Harvest of this autograft can precipitate significant morbidity and cost. Therefore, we undertook this randomized controlled trial to compare graft incorporation and healing of allograft and autograft in the lateral column lengthening component of adult flatfoot reconstruction. Lateral column lengthening was done as a component of operative correction for stage II PTTI in adult patients (older than 18 years) by two surgeons using similar procedures. The patients were randomized to either the allograft or autograft procedures. The primary endpoint was graft incorporation and healing as assessed by radiographs. The study included 33 randomized feet in 31 patients. We followed 18 feet in the allograft group and 15 in the autograft group to the point of union. There were 21 women and 10 men. There were no delayed unions, nonunions, or hardware failures. All patients in both groups achieved bony union by the 12-week followup evaluation. Two superficial foot infections were successfully treated with oral antibiotics. Two patients in the autograft group continued to have hip donor site pain at 3 months. This study suggests that union rates of allograft and autograft (iliac crest bone graft) are equal. The use of allograft in the lateral column lengthening component of operative correction of adult stage II PTTI appears to be a viable alternative to the use of iliac crest autograft and eliminates the morbidity and increased cost associated with autograft harvest.

Joint Training Programs: A Union-Management Approach to Preparing Workers for the Future.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ferman, Louis A., Ed.; And Others

This book documents the range of training programs that are being established by employers and unions; assesses porgram functioning and results; and offers insights for practitioners, scholars, and policy makers. An introduction (Ferman et al.) provides a general framework for thinking about union-management training programs and presents an…

48 CFR 1222.101-70 - Admittance of union representatives to DOT installations.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... meetings, collect union dues, or make speeches concerning union matters while visiting a work site. (b... written report to the DOT labor coordinator, the Office of the General Counsel, Office of Environmental... corresponding OA labor advisor, within two working days after the request for entry is denied. The report shall...

Unions' Deals with Brokers Raise Issues

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jacobson, Linda

2006-01-01

The New York state attorney general's office is close to announcing a settlement with the 525,000-member New York State United Teachers over a relationship between the union and ING Group, a large financial-services company based in the Netherlands. In that arrangement, the union's Member Benefits division--a separate trust that provides…

Power in Practice: Trade Union Education in Sierra Leone

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Stirling, John

2013-01-01

This article presents an analysis of the development of a trade union education program in Sierra Leone in the geo-historical context of British colonialism. It places the argument in relation to the contradictory trends of trade unionism more generally and alongside their antagonistic cooperation with capitalism. It discusses the limits and…

29 CFR 452.2 - Application of union constitution and bylaws.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... 29 Labor 2 2014-07-01 2014-07-01 false Application of union constitution and bylaws. 452.2 Section... REPORTING AND DISCLOSURE ACT OF 1959 General Considerations § 452.2 Application of union constitution and... validly adopted constitution and bylaws of the labor organizations insofar as they are not inconsistent...

29 CFR 452.2 - Application of union constitution and bylaws.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... 29 Labor 2 2011-07-01 2011-07-01 false Application of union constitution and bylaws. 452.2 Section... REPORTING AND DISCLOSURE ACT OF 1959 General Considerations § 452.2 Application of union constitution and... validly adopted constitution and bylaws of the labor organizations insofar as they are not inconsistent...

29 CFR 452.2 - Application of union constitution and bylaws.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... 29 Labor 2 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Application of union constitution and bylaws. 452.2 Section... REPORTING AND DISCLOSURE ACT OF 1959 General Considerations § 452.2 Application of union constitution and... validly adopted constitution and bylaws of the labor organizations insofar as they are not inconsistent...

29 CFR 452.2 - Application of union constitution and bylaws.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... 29 Labor 2 2013-07-01 2013-07-01 false Application of union constitution and bylaws. 452.2 Section... REPORTING AND DISCLOSURE ACT OF 1959 General Considerations § 452.2 Application of union constitution and... validly adopted constitution and bylaws of the labor organizations insofar as they are not inconsistent...

29 CFR 452.2 - Application of union constitution and bylaws.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... 29 Labor 2 2012-07-01 2012-07-01 false Application of union constitution and bylaws. 452.2 Section... REPORTING AND DISCLOSURE ACT OF 1959 General Considerations § 452.2 Application of union constitution and... validly adopted constitution and bylaws of the labor organizations insofar as they are not inconsistent...

Crossing statistic: reconstructing the expansion history of the universe

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

Shafieloo, Arman, E-mail: arman@ewha.ac.kr

2012-08-01

We present that by combining Crossing Statistic [1,2] and Smoothing method [3-5] one can reconstruct the expansion history of the universe with a very high precision without considering any prior on the cosmological quantities such as the equation of state of dark energy. We show that the presented method performs very well in reconstruction of the expansion history of the universe independent of the underlying models and it works well even for non-trivial dark energy models with fast or slow changes in the equation of state of dark energy. Accuracy of the reconstructed quantities along with independence of the methodmore » to any prior or assumption gives the proposed method advantages to the other non-parametric methods proposed before in the literature. Applying on the Union 2.1 supernovae combined with WiggleZ BAO data we present the reconstructed results and test the consistency of the two data sets in a model independent manner. Results show that latest available supernovae and BAO data are in good agreement with each other and spatially flat ΛCDM model is in concordance with the current data.« less

A Staged Reading of the Play: Reykjavik

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

2017-01-01

Reykjavik is the capital of Iceland, an island country located about 500 miles northwest of Scotland in the North Atlantic. In 1986 Mikhail Gorbachev, the Chairman of the Politburo of the Soviet Union and General Secretary of the Soviet Communist Party, invited Ronald Reagan, the President of the United States, to meet with him. The play Reykjavik is a dramatic reconstruction of the two-day summit meeting during which the world leaders almost reached agreement on the total abolition of their countries' nuclear weapons. The play uses the actual transcripts of the Reykjavik meeting as well as the memoirs of both Reagan and Gorbachev. Join us for a dramatic staged reading of Reykjavik and find out how close the two superpowers, the Soviet Union and the United States, came to eliminating their nuclear weapons. He playwright is Richard Rhodes, the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of 24 books. He has written his first play, and it spins off of his research into the history of nuclear weapons. The staged reading is performed by the Washington based Tonic Theater Company: http://www.tonictheater.org/[tonictheater.org]. After the performance, the play director and actors as well as experts on nuclear disarmament will be available for a talk-back discussion of the play with the audience. Produced by Brian Schwartz, Brooklyn College and the Graduate Center of the City University of New York and Gregory Mack of the APS Washington office.

Examining the cosmic acceleration with the latest Union2 supernova data

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, Zhengxiang; Wu, Puxun; Yu, Hongwei

2011-01-01

In this Letter, by reconstructing the Om diagnostic and the deceleration parameter q from the latest Union2 Type Ia Supernova sample with and without the systematic error along with the baryon acoustic oscillation (BAO) and the cosmic microwave background (CMB), we study the cosmic expanding history, using the Chevallier-Polarski-Linder (CPL) parametrization. We obtain that Union2+BAO favor an expansion with a decreasing of the acceleration at z<0.3. However, once the CMB data is added in the analysis, the cosmic acceleration is found to be still increasing, indicating a tension between low redshift data and high redshift. In order to reduce this tension significantly, two different methods are considered and thus two different subsamples of Union2 are selected. We then find that two different subsamples+BAO+CMB give completely different results on the cosmic expanding history when the systematic error is ignored, with one suggesting a decreasing cosmic acceleration, the other just the opposite, although both of them alone with BAO support that the cosmic acceleration is slowing down. However, once the systematic error is considered, two different subsamples of Union2 along with BAO and CMB all favor an increasing of the present cosmic acceleration. Therefore a clear-cut answer on whether the cosmic acceleration is slowing down calls for more consistent data and more reliable methods to analyze them.

JPRS Report, Soviet Union, International Affairs.

DTIC Science & Technology

1988-11-23

reequipment and reconstruction of produc- tion, scientific research , experimental design and other work, these funds can also be used for other purposes...electronics enterprises in that association, which are joined together in 28 research centers and groups , develop new products and engage in marketing and...philosophical sciences, senior research fellow of the USSR Academy of Sciences International Workers Movement Institute: "Noncapitalist Development: Vis- tas

A More Perfect Union: Shaping American Government [and] Teacher's Resource Packet. Choices for the 21st Century Project.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bakker, Don

The student's and teacher's resource books contain primary sources that focus on the values, beliefs, and interests that influenced the political development of the United States as a nation. Students revisit the events and controversies of 1763-88 through primary source documents and reconstructed debates to gain a deeper understanding of the…

Shoulder arthrodesis with a reconstruction plate

PubMed Central

Byeon, Hwa Kyo

2008-01-01

From 1995 to 2005, arthrodesis with a reconstruction plate was performed for eight shoulders. The average follow-up period was 44 months. The indications for shoulder arthrodesis were joint destruction as a sequel of tuberculous arthritis, malignant bone tumour, pyogenic arthritis, failed arthrodesis and paralysis of the brachial plexus. The evaluation criteria included bony union and pain. Two cases of malignant tumour required an homologous bone graft due to severe bone deficit—a fracture that occurred in the distal part of the arthrodesed shoulder after removing the plate. With the exception of these two cases, severe pain or other complications did not occur in any other case. Shoulder arthrodesis with a reconstruction plate was judged to be a useful method for glenohumeral salvage in cases without severe bone deficit. Further, additional treatment methods should be considered to prevent fracture that may occur as a result of severe bone deficit. PMID:18716728

Reconstruction of methods of execution of the death penalty by shooting in the years 1949-1954 based on exhumation research of "prison fields" in Osobowicki Cemetery in Wroclaw. Part II--analysis of gunshot injuries and an attempt at reconstructing the course of execution.

PubMed

Szleszkowski, Łukasz; Thannhäuser, Agata; Kawecki, Jerzy; Szwagrzyk, Krzysztof; Swiatek, Barbara

2012-01-01

The analysis of gunshot injuries in prisoners who were executed in Wroclaw penitentiary in the years 1949-1954 shows divergences from legal regulations describing the method of execution. This observation leads to the conclusion that the predominant method of execution of the death penalty was a gunshot or gunshots to the back of the head, which is analogous to the results of exhumation works on collective graves of war prisoners executed during World War II in the territory of the former Soviet Union.

Innovations in Science and Mathematics Education in Schools in the Soviet Union. Science and Technology Education Document Series No. 24.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Demidova, S. I.; And Others

The current reform of general secondary education and vocational training in the USSR is aimed at further improving quality and meeting social demands. This document is an addendum to "Science and Mathematics Education in the General Secondary School in the Soviet Union," published in July 1986. It discusses some of the new reform…

Changes in Estonian General Education from the Collapse of the Soviet Union to EU Entry

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Krull, Edgar; Trasberg, Karmen

2006-01-01

This article introduces and discusses the nature and development of Estonian system of general education in the period of last thirty years. The main focus is paid on the changes resulting from the collapse of the Soviet Union and the period of integration leading up to EU entry. Also changes in other spheres of education and social life are…

JPRS Report, Science & Technology, USSR: Life Sciences.

DTIC Science & Technology

1988-02-26

Center for Traumatology and Orthopedics (Valeriy Gavrish; NEDELYA, No 40, 5-11 Oct 87) 49 PSYCHOLOGY Hypnosis — Possible Applications for...G.V. Morozov, All-Union Scientific Research Institute of General and Forensic Psychiatry imeni V.P. Serbskiy, Moscow] [Abstract] The goal of this...and V.Yu. Novototskiy-Vlasov, All-Union Scientific Research Institute of General and Forensic Psychiatry imeni V.P. Serbskiy, Moscow] [Abstract

Sub-Saharan Africa Report No. 2843.

DTIC Science & Technology

1983-09-14

Quota System Lifted 33 University Students Boycott Classes 33 Higher University Fees Protested 33 Labor Unions Decline UDF Membership 33 Progress...Friday that Mr Biya might shortly summon a special congress of the country’s only political party, the Cameroon National Union (UNC). Its...understanding of the Soviet Union in its struggle against colonialism, Neocolonialism and apartheid. The OAU secretary general expressed gratitude for the

The Soviet Union and Eastern Europe: A Bibliographic Guide to Recommended Books for Small and Medium-Sized Libraries and School Media Centers.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Horak, Stephan M.

Intended to aid librarians in small- and medium-sized libraries and media centers, this annotated bibliography lists 1,555 books focusing on the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe. The book is divided into four parts: (1) "General and Interrelated Themes--Union of the Soviet Socialist Republics and Eastern European Countries"; (2)…

78 FR 67217 - Union Pacific Railroad Company-Abandonment Exemption-in Franklin County, Iowa

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2013-11-08

... filed with the Board should be sent to UP's representative: Mack H. Shumate, Jr., Senior General Attorney, Union Pacific Railroad Company, 101 North Wacker Drive, Room 1920, Chicago, IL 60606. If the...

78 FR 33468 - Union Pacific Railroad Company-Abandonment Exemption-in Wright County, Iowa

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2013-06-04

... filed with the Board should be sent to UP's representative: Mack H. Shumate, Jr., Senior General Attorney, Union Pacific Railroad Company, 101 North Wacker Drive, Room 1920, Chicago, IL 60606. If the...

Advantages of an on-the-screwhead crosslink connector for atlantoaxial fixation using the Goel/Harms technique.

PubMed

Mizutani, Jun; Inada, Atsushi; Kato, Kenji; Kondo, Akira; Kainuma, Shingo; Fujita, Kazuhiko; Yagi, Kiyoshi; Shimamura, Yasuteru; Fukuoka, Muneyoshi; Shibamoto, Yuta; Wada, Ikuo; Otsuka, Takanobu

2018-04-01

The goal of fixation surgery for atlantoaxial instability is to achieve solid bony fusion. Achieving bony fusion as early as possible is beneficial for patients. Although placement of a transverse cross-link connector (XL) provides greater biomechanical strength, XLs have not been able to be placed when performing the Goel/Harms procedure. Recently, placing a XL on the screw head (on-the-head XL [OH-XL]) has become a viable option during the Goel/Harms procedure. However, there is little evidence demonstrating whether applying an OH-XL achieves early solid bony union. A matched-control study was conducted to investigate whether placing an OH-XLs in C1/2 fixation surgery provides earlier bone union or not. Eighteen patients who underwent atlantoaxial fusion with OH-XLs (X-group), and 17 age and sex-matched patients without OH-XLs (NX-group) were compared. Bony union was assessed using reconstructed sagittal and coronal computed tomography images. Six months after surgery, six patients in the X-group and one patient in the NX-group achieved bony union (p = .0338). One year after surgery, 14 patients in the X-group and 4 patients in the NX-group achieved bone union (p = .0010). Two years after surgery, 17 patients in the X-group and 9 patients in the NX-group achieved bony union (p = .0011). This is the first report of the clinical application of OH-XLs for the Goel/Harms procedure. OH-XLs yield earlier bony fusion; thus, placing OH-XLs is beneficial for atlantoaxial fixation surgery using lateral mass screws of the atlas. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

78 FR 53819 - Union Pacific Railroad Company-Abandonment Exemption-in Canyon County, Idaho

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2013-08-30

... petition filed with the Board should be sent to UP's representative: Mack H. Shumate, Jr., Senior General Attorney, Union Pacific Railroad Company, 101 North Wacker Drive, Room 1920, Chicago, IL 60606. If the...

IFLA General Conference, 1985. Collection and Services Division. Section: Interlending and Document Delivery. The Online System of Union Catalogues and Interlibrary Loan ('NCC/IBL') in the Netherlands.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Willemsen, Arie W.

This paper describes the interlending system in the Netherlands and examines the country's union catalogs, the main instrument in the interlending procedure. An overview of the integrated interlending system is provided; the union catalogs of the Royal Library in The Hague, the Technical University Library at Delft, and the library of the…

An Internet service for manipulating 3D models of human organs reconstructed from computer tomography and magnetic resonance imaging.

PubMed

Clapworthy, G; Krokos, M; Vasilonikolidakis, N

1997-11-01

Our paper describes an integrated methodology addressing the development of an Internet service for medical professionals, medical students and generally, people interested in medicine. The service (currently developed in the framework of IAEVA, a Telematics Application Programme project of the European Union), incorporates a mechanism for retrieving from a relational database (reference library) 3D volumetric models of human organs reconstructed from computer tomography (CT) and/or magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Retrieval is implemented in a way transparent to the actual physical location of the database. Prospective users are provided with a Solid Object Viewer that offers them manipulation (rotation, zooming, dissection etc.) of 3D volumetric models. The service constitutes an excellent foundation of understanding for medical professionals/students and a mechanism for broad and rapid dissemination of information related to particular pathological conditions; although pathological conditions of the knee and skin are supported currently, our methodology allows easy service extension into other human organs ultimately covering the entire human body. The service accepts most Internet browsers and supports MS-Windows 32 platforms; no graphics accelerators or any specialised hardware are necessary, thereby allowing service availability to the widest possible audience. Nevertheless, the service operates in near real-time not only over high speed expensive network lines but also over low/medium network connections.

The Role of the Cavalry at Gettysburg June 30, 1863-July 3, 1863: A Guide to the Battlefield.

DTIC Science & Technology

1988-03-18

advance element of the 2d North Carolina Cavalry entered the town of Hanover and ran into the rear of a Union cavalry brigade. Major John Hammond, of...forces, as ,. the following accounts from Brigadier General . John Buford, Commander of the First Division, reflect. 0 JUNE 30, 1863- 5.30 a. m. The enemy...Command - Gettysburg S75 U+ ’V. , UNION ORDER OF BATTLE CAVALRY CORPS Major General Alfred Pleasonton FIRST DIVISION Brigadier General John Buford First

JPRS Report, Soviet Union, Kommunist, No. 13, September 1989

DTIC Science & Technology

1989-11-15

friends and acquaintances, whose honesty I did not doubt in the least, were classified as "enemies of the people".... How- ever, the hypnosis of the...General and Forensic Psychiatry imeni V.P. Serbskiy is characteristic. For example, the article expresses justified puzzlement at the totally amorphous...head of a department at the Ukrainian branch of the All-Union Scientific Research Institute of General and Forensic Psychiatry imeni V.P. Serbskiy

The Role of Soviet Trade Unions in the Lifelong Education of Workers. Adult Education in Europe. Studies and Documents No. 17.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Yazykova, V. S.

In the U.S.S.R., the trade unions see the continuous growth of the general educational, cultural and technical level of all workers as one of the conditions of social and scientific progress in the interests of the working class. The role of the unions in the lifelong education of the population is determined by their status in the political…

Complications in proximal humeral fractures.

PubMed

Calori, Giorgio Maria; Colombo, Massimiliano; Bucci, Miguel Simon; Fadigati, Piero; Colombo, Alessandra Ines Maria; Mazzola, Simone; Cefalo, Vittorio; Mazza, Emilio

2016-10-01

Necrosis of the humeral head, infections and non-unions are among the most dangerous and difficult-to-treat complications of proximal humeral fractures. The aim of this work was to analyse in detail non-unions and post-traumatic bone defects and to suggest an algorithm of care. Treatment options are based not only on the radiological frame, but also according to a detailed analysis of the patient, who is classified using a risk factor analysis. This method enables the surgeon to choose the most suitable treatment for the patient, thereby facilitating return of function in the shortest possible time. The treatment of such serious complications requires the surgeon to be knowledgeable about the following possible solutions: increased mechanical stability; biological stimulation; and reconstructive techniques in two steps, with application of biotechnologies and prosthetic substitution. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

JPRS Report. Soviet Union: World Economy & International Relations, No. 5, May 1987

DTIC Science & Technology

1987-09-22

at the same time substitute for their creative assertiveness and intuition. This applies not only to the elite group of researchers and designers ...achieved such large-scale results in such a short period of time. Not only quantitative but primarily qualitative results. And not simply in the...into A GROUP OF PERSONALITIES, each of which and all together in time acquiring growing importance in history? Today, in the era of reconstruction

Morphology and Mobility of the Reconstructed Basilar Joint of the Pollicized Index Finger.

PubMed

Strugarek-Lecoanet, Clotilde; Chevrollier, Jérémie; Pauchard, Nicolas; Blum, Alain; Dap, François; Dautel, Gilles

2016-09-01

To evaluate outcome and function of the reconstructed basilar thumb joint after index finger pollicization in patients presenting congenital thumb deficiency. Plain radiographs and 4-dimensional dynamic volume computed tomography scan were used to evaluate the outcome of 23 pollicizations performed on 14 children between 1996 and 2009. The mean follow-up was 8 years. Patients performed continuous movements of thumb opposition during the imaging studies. Four-dimensional scan images made it possible to visualize mobility within the reconstructed joint. In 14 cases, union occurred in the metacarpal head/metacarpal base interface. In the 9 other cases, there was a nonunion at this interface. The reconstructed joint was mobile in 20 cases, including 3 in which there was also mobility at the site of the nonunion. In 3 cases in our series, mobility was present only at the site of the nonunion, between the base and the head of the second metacarpal. Remodeling and flattening out of the metacarpal head occurred in 16 of 23 cases. The transposed metacarpal head remained spherical in 7 cases. The reconstructed joint adapts, both morphologically and functionally, allowing movement on all 3 spatial planes. Existing mechanical constraints on the reconstructed joint may explain its remodeled appearance. Therapeutic IV. Copyright © 2016 American Society for Surgery of the Hand. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Time-resolved C-arm cone beam CT angiography (TR-CBCTA) imaging from a single short-scan C-arm cone beam CT acquisition with intra-arterial contrast injection

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, Yinsheng; Garrett, John W.; Li, Ke; Wu, Yijing; Johnson, Kevin; Schafer, Sebastian; Strother, Charles; Chen, Guang-Hong

2018-04-01

Time-resolved C-arm cone-beam CT (CBCT) angiography (TR-CBCTA) images can be generated from a series of CBCT acquisitions that satisfy data sufficiency condition in analytical image reconstruction theory. In this work, a new technique was developed to generate TR-CBCTA images from a single short-scan CBCT data acquisition with contrast media injection. The reconstruction technique enabling this application is a previously developed image reconstruction technique, synchronized multi-artifact reduction with tomographic reconstruction (SMART-RECON). In this new application, the acquired short-scan CBCT projection data were sorted into a union of several sub-sectors of view angles and each sub-sector of view angles corresponds to an individual image volume to be reconstructed. The SMART-RECON method was then used to jointly reconstruct all of these individual image volumes under two constraints: (1) each individual image volume is maximally consistent with the measured cone-beam projection data within the corresponding view angle sector and (2) the nuclear norm of the image matrix is minimized. The difference between these reconstructed individual image volumes is used to generated the desired subtracted angiograms. To validate the technique, numerical simulation data generated from a fractal tree angiogram phantom were used to quantitatively study the accuracy of the proposed method and retrospective in vivo human subject studies were used to demonstrate the feasibility of generating TR-CBCTA in clinical practice.

77 FR 56873 - Investigations Regarding Eligibility To Apply for Worker Adjustment Assistance

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2012-09-14

........... 08/27/12 08/21/12 (Union). 81923 General Electric Ohio Lamp Warren, OH 08/27/12 08/24/12 Plant (Union... Alpharetta, GA........ 08/31/12 08/23/12 OneCARE (Company). 81933 Parker Hannifin--Spartan New Haven, IN...

Petitions for 1992-94 union and section officer nominations due July 8

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

The nominees listed below are those of the Union and Section nominating committees and have been approved by the AGU Council. Additional nominations may be made by membership petition. There are no age, nationality, residence, or other analogous restrictions on who may serve as an officer. Petitions should be sent to the General Secretary, American Geophysical Union, 2000 Florida Ave. N.W., Washington, DC 20009. They must be received no later than July 8, 1991.

Naval War College Review. Volume 64, Number 1, Winter 2011

DTIC Science & Technology

2011-01-01

2010, a Chinese delegation headed by Major General Li Ning, the defense counselor for the Chinese mission to the European Union , visited the...headquarters of European Union Naval Force (EU NAVFOR) Somalia in Djibouti.52 Djibouti would be an excellent choice as a place for the PLAN, and it should...France’s Base Aérienne 188 is home to the headquarters of EU NAVFOR Somalia/Operation ATALANTA, the European Union naval force tasked with

Variational analysis of drifter positions and model outputs for the reconstruction of surface currents in the central Adriatic during fall 2002

USGS Publications Warehouse

Taillandier, V.; Griffa, A.; Poulain, P.-M.; Signell, R.; Chiggiato, J.; Carniel, S.

2008-01-01

In this paper we present an application of a variational method for the reconstruction of the velocity field in a coastal flow in the central Adriatic Sea, using in situ data from surface drifters and outputs from the ROMS circulation model. The variational approach, previously developed and tested for mesoscale open ocean flows, has been improved and adapted to account for inhomogeneities on boundary current dynamics over complex bathymetry and coastline and for weak Lagrangian persistence in coastal flows. The velocity reconstruction is performed using nine drifter trajectories over 45 d, and a hierarchy of indirect tests is introduced to evaluate the results as the real ocean state is not known. For internal consistency and impact of the analysis, three diagnostics characterizing the particle prediction and transport, in terms of residence times in various zones and export rates from the boundary current toward the interior, show that the reconstruction is quite effective. A qualitative comparison with sea color data from the MODIS satellite images shows that the reconstruction significantly improves the description of the boundary current with respect to the ROMS model first guess, capturing its main features and its exchanges with the interior when sampled by the drifters. Copyright 2008 by the American Geophysical Union.

78 FR 59975 - Agency Information Collection Activities: Submission to OMB for Reinstatement, With Change, of a...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2013-09-30

... credit unions. The Interlocks Act generally prohibits financial institution management officials from... federally insured credit unions having a common management official with another type financial institution... comply with the Depository Institution Management Interlocks Act (Interlocks Act) and to determine...

12 CFR 747.801 - Applicability.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... 12 Banks and Banking 6 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Applicability. 747.801 Section 747.801 Banks and Banking NATIONAL CREDIT UNION ADMINISTRATION REGULATIONS AFFECTING CREDIT UNIONS ADMINISTRATIVE... the NCUA Board or its General Counsel, as described in subpart H of this part, and with or without the...

29 CFR 452.3 - Interpretations of constitution and bylaws.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... 29 Labor 2 2014-07-01 2014-07-01 false Interpretations of constitution and bylaws. 452.3 Section... REPORTING AND DISCLOSURE ACT OF 1959 General Considerations § 452.3 Interpretations of constitution and bylaws. The interpretation consistently placed on a union's constitution by the responsible union...

29 CFR 452.3 - Interpretations of constitution and bylaws.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... 29 Labor 2 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Interpretations of constitution and bylaws. 452.3 Section... REPORTING AND DISCLOSURE ACT OF 1959 General Considerations § 452.3 Interpretations of constitution and bylaws. The interpretation consistently placed on a union's constitution by the responsible union...

29 CFR 452.3 - Interpretations of constitution and bylaws.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... 29 Labor 2 2013-07-01 2013-07-01 false Interpretations of constitution and bylaws. 452.3 Section... REPORTING AND DISCLOSURE ACT OF 1959 General Considerations § 452.3 Interpretations of constitution and bylaws. The interpretation consistently placed on a union's constitution by the responsible union...

29 CFR 452.3 - Interpretations of constitution and bylaws.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... 29 Labor 2 2011-07-01 2011-07-01 false Interpretations of constitution and bylaws. 452.3 Section... REPORTING AND DISCLOSURE ACT OF 1959 General Considerations § 452.3 Interpretations of constitution and bylaws. The interpretation consistently placed on a union's constitution by the responsible union...

29 CFR 452.3 - Interpretations of constitution and bylaws.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... 29 Labor 2 2012-07-01 2012-07-01 false Interpretations of constitution and bylaws. 452.3 Section... REPORTING AND DISCLOSURE ACT OF 1959 General Considerations § 452.3 Interpretations of constitution and bylaws. The interpretation consistently placed on a union's constitution by the responsible union...

Workers' Education--Seen by an African Trade Unionist.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Labour Education, 1982

1982-01-01

The Secretary-General of the Organization of African Trade Union Unity gives a broad overview of workers' education activities conducted by that union, describes the activities, and discusses how the activities differ in concept and content from such activities in other parts of the world. (CT)

Labor unions and safety climate: perceived union safety values and retail employee safety outcomes.

PubMed

Sinclair, Robert R; Martin, James E; Sears, Lindsay E

2010-09-01

Although trade unions have long been recognized as a critical advocate for employee safety and health, safety climate research has not paid much attention to the role unions play in workplace safety. We proposed a multiple constituency model of workplace safety which focused on three central safety stakeholders: top management, ones' immediate supervisor, and the labor union. Safety climate research focuses on management and supervisors as key stakeholders, but has not considered whether employee perceptions about the priority their union places on safety contributes contribute to safety outcomes. We addressed this gap in the literature by investigating unionized retail employee (N=535) perceptions about the extent to which their top management, immediate supervisors, and union valued safety. Confirmatory factor analyses demonstrated that perceived union safety values could be distinguished from measures of safety training, workplace hazards, top management safety values, and supervisor values. Structural equation analyses indicated that union safety values influenced safety outcomes through its association with higher safety motivation, showing a similar effect as that of supervisor safety values. These findings highlight the need for further attention to union-focused measures related to workplace safety as well as further study of retail employees in general. We discuss the practical implications of our findings and identify several directions for future safety research. 2009 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

[Recent initiatives of the European Union on the field of drug use and trafficking].

PubMed

Salazar, Lorenzo

2002-01-01

Moving from the general framework offered by the Treaties of the European Union and European Community, the paper presents the more recent specific initiatives of the Union in the field of fight against drugs and in particular on the European Union Plan of Action, adopted by the European Council in June 2000, and on the need for a global and balanced approach which it proposes as the main focus of the action of the European institutions. The paper then examines separately the initiatives taken both at the level of the reduction of the demand, mainly at the preventive and sanitary level, and of the supply reduction, of a mainly repressive character. Conclusively, the main initiatives in the field of international co-operation among the European Union and third Countries.

12 CFR 708a.4 - Disclosures and communications to members.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

...-related economic benefit a director or senior management official will or may receive including receipt of... to any matter, including a general economic, political, racial, religious, social, or similar cause... impugning the stability and soundness of the credit union. (5) If a converting credit union believes some or...

12 CFR 747.12 - Construction of time limits.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... 12 Banks and Banking 6 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Construction of time limits. 747.12 Section 747.12 Banks and Banking NATIONAL CREDIT UNION ADMINISTRATION REGULATIONS AFFECTING CREDIT UNIONS... of Practice and Procedure § 747.12 Construction of time limits. (a) General rule. In computing any...

Collective Bargaining, a New Common Law for College Professors.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Brown, Frank

1980-01-01

In general, collective bargaining for college faculties means that individual faculty members cannot exercise traditional constitutional rights of due process, even if they are not members of the union. Some provisions differ from one state to another. However, both public and private colleges are increasingly voting to unionize. (Author/CTM)

12 CFR 716.8 - Revised privacy notices.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-01-01

... 12 Banks and Banking 7 2012-01-01 2012-01-01 false Revised privacy notices. 716.8 Section 716.8 Banks and Banking NATIONAL CREDIT UNION ADMINISTRATION REGULATIONS AFFECTING CREDIT UNIONS PRIVACY OF CONSUMER FINANCIAL INFORMATION Privacy and Opt Out Notices § 716.8 Revised privacy notices. (a) General...

12 CFR 716.8 - Revised privacy notices.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-01-01

... 12 Banks and Banking 7 2013-01-01 2013-01-01 false Revised privacy notices. 716.8 Section 716.8 Banks and Banking NATIONAL CREDIT UNION ADMINISTRATION REGULATIONS AFFECTING CREDIT UNIONS PRIVACY OF CONSUMER FINANCIAL INFORMATION Privacy and Opt Out Notices § 716.8 Revised privacy notices. (a) General...

12 CFR 716.8 - Revised privacy notices.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-01-01

... 12 Banks and Banking 6 2011-01-01 2011-01-01 false Revised privacy notices. 716.8 Section 716.8 Banks and Banking NATIONAL CREDIT UNION ADMINISTRATION REGULATIONS AFFECTING CREDIT UNIONS PRIVACY OF CONSUMER FINANCIAL INFORMATION Privacy and Opt Out Notices § 716.8 Revised privacy notices. (a) General...

12 CFR 716.8 - Revised privacy notices.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... 12 Banks and Banking 6 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Revised privacy notices. 716.8 Section 716.8 Banks and Banking NATIONAL CREDIT UNION ADMINISTRATION REGULATIONS AFFECTING CREDIT UNIONS PRIVACY OF CONSUMER FINANCIAL INFORMATION Privacy and Opt Out Notices § 716.8 Revised privacy notices. (a) General...

12 CFR 707.3 - General disclosure requirements.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-01-01

... consent and other applicable provisions of the Electronic Signatures in Global and National Commerce Act... each account offered by a credit union may be presented separately or combined with disclosures for the credit union's other accounts, as long as it is clear which disclosures are applicable to the member or...

12 CFR 707.3 - General disclosure requirements.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-01-01

... consent and other applicable provisions of the Electronic Signatures in Global and National Commerce Act... each account offered by a credit union may be presented separately or combined with disclosures for the credit union's other accounts, as long as it is clear which disclosures are applicable to the member or...

12 CFR 707.3 - General disclosure requirements.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-01-01

... consent and other applicable provisions of the Electronic Signatures in Global and National Commerce Act... each account offered by a credit union may be presented separately or combined with disclosures for the credit union's other accounts, as long as it is clear which disclosures are applicable to the member or...

12 CFR 707.3 - General disclosure requirements.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-01-01

... consent and other applicable provisions of the Electronic Signatures in Global and National Commerce Act... each account offered by a credit union may be presented separately or combined with disclosures for the credit union's other accounts, as long as it is clear which disclosures are applicable to the member or...

12 CFR 760.8 - Determination fees.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... 12 Banks and Banking 6 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Determination fees. 760.8 Section 760.8 Banks... HAVING SPECIAL FLOOD HAZARDS § 760.8 Determination fees. (a) General. Notwithstanding any Federal or... credit union, or a servicer acting on behalf of the credit union, may charge a reasonable fee for...

Socialization of the Child in the Soviet Union.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sandanavicius, Mary

1979-01-01

The socialization process of the child in the Soviet Union is examined in terms of socialistic/communistic political philosophy and the general attitudes of the Soviets toward social sciences, child rearing, and educational practice. The family, school, and youth organizations are also discussed as socializing agents. (Author/KC)

Fast Surface Reconstruction and Segmentation with Ground-Based and Airborne LIDAR Range Data

DTIC Science & Technology

2009-01-14

to perform a union find on the ground mesh vertices to calculate the sizes of ground mesh segments, 462 seconds to read the airborne data in to a...NUMBER 6. AUTHOR(S) 5d. PROJECT NUMBER 5e. TASK NUMBER 5f. WORK UNIT NUMBER 7. PERFORMING ORGANIZATION NAME(S) AND ADDRESS(ES) University of...California at Berkeley,Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Sciences,Berkeley,CA,94720 8. PERFORMING ORGANIZATION REPORT NUMBER 9

Health consequences of Chernobyl and other radiation accidents. Report on the European Union Cluster Contractors' workshop (San Miniato, Italy, 17-22 June 1997).

PubMed

Karaoglou, A; Chadwick, K H

1998-04-01

The Radiation Protection Research Unit of the European Commission has been supporting collaborative research projects on the radiological consequences of the Chernobyl accident since 1991. However, in the Fourth Framework Programme of the Commission which started in 1996, the collaboration with scientists in the former Soviet Union has been placed on a different footing, and the programme has been expanded to include other regions, especially in Russia and Kazakhstan, where previous nuclear incidents have led to the exposure of workers and the local populations and to widespread radioactive contamination. There are 15 projects on health-related studies in the newly started programme, and in order to improve the collaboration between the different scientists working in these projects a Cluster Contractors' Meeting was organised in San Miniato, Italy, in June 1997 with the participation of some 50 scientists from the European Union (EU) and the Newly Independent States (NIS). This report summarizes the different topics, including molecular biology and treatment of childhood thyroid cancer, various epidemiological studies and dose reconstruction, which were discussed at the meeting and which form the major projects in the new collaborative programme.

Transcriptomic Analysis Provides Insights into Grafting Union Development in Pecan (Carya illinoinensis).

PubMed

Mo, Zhenghai; Feng, Gang; Su, Wenchuan; Liu, Zhuangzhuang; Peng, Fangren

2018-02-05

Pecan ( Carya illinoinensis ), as a popular nut tree, has been widely planted in China in recent years. Grafting is an important technique for its cultivation. For a successful grafting, graft union development generally involves the formation of callus and vascular bundles at the graft union. To explore the molecular mechanism of graft union development, we applied high throughput RNA sequencing to investigate the transcriptomic profiles of graft union at four timepoints (0 days, 8 days, 15 days, and 30 days) during the pecan grafting process. After de novo assembly, 83,693 unigenes were obtained, and 40,069 of them were annotated. A total of 12,180 differentially expressed genes were identified between by grafting. Genes involved in hormone signaling, cell proliferation, xylem differentiation, cell elongation, secondary cell wall deposition, programmed cell death, and reactive oxygen species (ROS) scavenging showed significant differential expression during the graft union developmental process. In addition, we found that the content of auxin, cytokinin, and gibberellin were accumulated at the graft unions during the grafting process. These results will aid in our understanding of successful grafting in the future.

Transcriptomic Analysis Provides Insights into Grafting Union Development in Pecan (Carya illinoinensis)

PubMed Central

Mo, Zhenghai; Feng, Gang; Su, Wenchuan; Liu, Zhuangzhuang; Peng, Fangren

2018-01-01

Pecan (Carya illinoinensis), as a popular nut tree, has been widely planted in China in recent years. Grafting is an important technique for its cultivation. For a successful grafting, graft union development generally involves the formation of callus and vascular bundles at the graft union. To explore the molecular mechanism of graft union development, we applied high throughput RNA sequencing to investigate the transcriptomic profiles of graft union at four timepoints (0 days, 8 days, 15 days, and 30 days) during the pecan grafting process. After de novo assembly, 83,693 unigenes were obtained, and 40,069 of them were annotated. A total of 12,180 differentially expressed genes were identified between by grafting. Genes involved in hormone signaling, cell proliferation, xylem differentiation, cell elongation, secondary cell wall deposition, programmed cell death, and reactive oxygen species (ROS) scavenging showed significant differential expression during the graft union developmental process. In addition, we found that the content of auxin, cytokinin, and gibberellin were accumulated at the graft unions during the grafting process. These results will aid in our understanding of successful grafting in the future. PMID:29401757

Social assistance and conjugal union dissolution in Canada: a dynamic analysis.

PubMed

Lefebvre, P; Merrigan, P

1997-02-01

"Using Statistics Canada's General Social Survey on Family and Friends, carried out in 1990, we piece together the matrimonial and conjugal life history of a large sample of Canadian men and women. We then estimate duration models (Cox's proportional hazard models) describing the evolutionary laws of marriages and unions, which depend on various economic or socio-demographic explanatory variables. The empirical modelling focuses primarily on estimating the impact of couples' earned incomes and of provincial welfare programs on the dissolution rate of first marriages and unions....We...find that welfare benefits do not have an impact on the hazard of union dissolution and that earned incomes have a positive effect on conjugal stability." (EXCERPT)

Treatment of segmental tibial fractures with supercutaneous plating.

PubMed

He, Xianfeng; Zhang, Jingwei; Li, Ming; Yu, Yihui; Zhu, Limei

2014-08-01

Segmental tibial fractures usually follow a high-energy trauma and are often associated with many complications. The purpose of this report is to describe the authors' results in the treatment of segmental tibial fractures with supercutaneous locking plates used as external fixators. Between January 2009 and March 2012, a total of 20 patients underwent external plating (supercutaneous plating) of the segmental tibial fractures using a less-invasive stabilization system locking plate (Synthes, Paoli, Pennsylvania). Six fractures were closed and 14 were open (6 grade IIIa, 2 grade IIIb, 4 grade II, and 2 grade I, according to the Gustilo classification). When imaging studies confirmed bone union, the plates and screws were removed in the outpatient clinic. Average time of follow-up was 23 months (range, 12-47 months). All fractures achieved union. Median time to union was 19 weeks (range, 12-40 weeks) for the proximal fractures and 22 weeks (range, 12-42 weeks) for the distal fractures. Functional results were excellent in 17 patients and good in 3. Delayed union of the fracture occurred in 2 patients. All patients' radiographs showed normal alignment. No rotational deformities and leg shortening were seen. No incidences of deep infection or implant failures occurred. Minor screw tract infection occurred in 2 patients. A new 1-stage protocol using supercutaneous plating as a definitive fixator for segmental tibial fractures is less invasive, has a lower cost, and has a shorter hospitalization time. Surgeons can achieve good reduction, soft tissue reconstruction, stable fixation, and high union rates using supercutaneous plating. The current patients obtained excellent knee and ankle joint motion and good functional outcomes and had a comfortable clinical course. Copyright 2014, SLACK Incorporated.

Self-Rated Health at the Intersection of Sexual Identity and Union Status

PubMed Central

Reczek, Corinne; Liu, Hui; Spiker, Russell

2016-01-01

There is a well-established relationship between union status and health within the general population, and growing evidence of an association between sexual identity and well-being. Yet, what is unknown is whether union status stratifies health outcomes across sexual identity categories. In order to elucidate this question, we analyzed nationally representative population-based data from the National Health Interview Surveys 2013–2014 (N = 53,135) to examine variation in self-rated health by sexual partnership status (i.e., by sexual identity across union status). We further test the role of socioeconomic status and gender in these associations. Results from logistic regression models show that union status stratifies self-rated health across gay, lesbian, and heterosexual populations, albeit in different ways for men and women. Socioeconomic status does not play a major role in accounting for these differences. Findings highlight the need for specific interventions with lesbian women, who appear to experience the most strident disadvantage across union status categories. PMID:28202146

Self-rated health at the intersection of sexual identity and union status.

PubMed

Reczek, Corinne; Liu, Hui; Spiker, Russell

2017-03-01

There is a well-established relationship between union status and health within the general population, and growing evidence of an association between sexual identity and well-being. Yet, what is unknown is whether union status stratifies health outcomes across sexual identity categories. In order to elucidate this question, we analyzed nationally representative population-based data from the National Health Interview Surveys 2013-2014 (N = 53,135) to examine variation in self-rated health by sexual partnership status (i.e., by sexual identity across union status). We further test the role of socioeconomic status and gender in these associations. Results from logistic regression models show that union status stratifies self-rated health across gay, lesbian, and heterosexual populations, albeit in different ways for men and women. Socioeconomic status does not play a major role in accounting for these differences. Findings highlight the need for specific interventions with lesbian women, who appear to experience the most strident disadvantage across union status categories. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Epiphyseal union of the cervical vertebral centra: its relationship to skeletal age and maturation of thoracic vertebral centra.

PubMed

Albert, Midori A; Maier, Christopher A

2013-11-01

Epiphyseal union stages for cervical vertebral centra (ring epiphyses) were documented for 55 individuals (females and males, ages 14-27 years) from the Terry Collection, using the Albert and Maples method 1, to examine both its relationship to age at death and to thoracic data collected from the same individuals using the same method. Results showed a moderate correlation between cervical ring union and age (r = 0.63, p = 0.000), and a fairly low correlation between cervical and thoracic ring union (r = 0.41, p = 0.002). Paired samples t-tests yielded a statistically significant difference between cervical and thoracic union mean values (p = 0.01). Union progressed earlier in cervical vertebrae and in females. Results indicated fairly substantial variation in both sexes. Findings may serve as a basic guideline for estimating a general age range at death for unknown skeletal remains and to corroborate findings from other skeletal age indicators. © 2013 American Academy of Forensic Sciences.

78 FR 52217 - Agency Information Collection Activities: Submission to OMB for Reinstatement, With Change, of a...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2013-08-22

... credit unions. The Interlocks Act generally prohibits financial institution management officials from... comply with the Depository Institution Management Interlocks Act (Interlocks Act) and to determine... types of financial institutions, not between two or more credit unions. 12 U.S.C. 3204(3). NCUA last...

Tenth Report By the International Telecommunication Union on Telecommunication and the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

International Telecommunication Union, Geneva (Switzerland).

Reports are presented on the 1970-71 activities of the General Secretariat of the International Telecommunication Union, the International Frequency Registration Board, the International Radio Consultative Committee, and the International Telegraph and Telephone Consultative Committee. In addition progress in the field of space communications made…

Academies: A Breakthrough or Yet More Spin?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sinnott, Steve

2008-01-01

In this article the General Secretary of the National Union of Teachers outlines the reasons why the Union opposes Academies, and gives an overview of the changes in the relationship between local authorities and Academies. The NUT recognises that the change of government presents an opportunity for a change of direction and welcomes reports that…

Gender Issues within Higher Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

European Students' Union (NJ1), 2008

2008-01-01

This handbook functions as a crown on the European Students' Union's work on gender equality over the past two years. Since the establishment of the Gender Equality Committee, a lot of work has been done to improve gender equality in higher education generally, and in student unions more particularly. This handbook gathers the experiences and…

12 CFR 792.58 - Requests for correction or amendment to a record; administrative review of requests.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-01-01

... INFORMATION UNDER THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT AND PRIVACY ACT, AND BY SUBPOENA; SECURITY PROCEDURES FOR... the Privacy Act Officer, Office of General Counsel, National Credit Union Administration, 1775 Duke... record; administrative review of requests. 792.58 Section 792.58 Banks and Banking NATIONAL CREDIT UNION...

12 CFR 792.58 - Requests for correction or amendment to a record; administrative review of requests.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-01-01

... INFORMATION UNDER THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT AND PRIVACY ACT, AND BY SUBPOENA; SECURITY PROCEDURES FOR... the Privacy Act Officer, Office of General Counsel, National Credit Union Administration, 1775 Duke... record; administrative review of requests. 792.58 Section 792.58 Banks and Banking NATIONAL CREDIT UNION...

12 CFR 792.58 - Requests for correction or amendment to a record; administrative review of requests.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-01-01

... INFORMATION UNDER THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT AND PRIVACY ACT, AND BY SUBPOENA; SECURITY PROCEDURES FOR... the Privacy Act Officer, Office of General Counsel, National Credit Union Administration, 1775 Duke... record; administrative review of requests. 792.58 Section 792.58 Banks and Banking NATIONAL CREDIT UNION...

12 CFR 792.58 - Requests for correction or amendment to a record; administrative review of requests.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-01-01

... INFORMATION UNDER THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT AND PRIVACY ACT, AND BY SUBPOENA; SECURITY PROCEDURES FOR... the Privacy Act Officer, Office of General Counsel, National Credit Union Administration, 1775 Duke... record; administrative review of requests. 792.58 Section 792.58 Banks and Banking NATIONAL CREDIT UNION...

12 CFR 792.58 - Requests for correction or amendment to a record; administrative review of requests.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... INFORMATION UNDER THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT AND PRIVACY ACT, AND BY SUBPOENA; SECURITY PROCEDURES FOR... the Privacy Act Officer, Office of General Counsel, National Credit Union Administration, 1775 Duke... record; administrative review of requests. 792.58 Section 792.58 Banks and Banking NATIONAL CREDIT UNION...

76 FR 11164 - Removing References to Credit Ratings in Regulations; Proposing Alternatives to the Use of Credit...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2011-03-01

... of the regulations governing the investment activities of natural person Federal credit unions (FCUs..., investment activities, and capital risk-weighting of corporate credit unions. 12 CFR part 704. There is also... regulations. For investments, the proposal generally replaces the minimum credit rating requirement with a...

Europe in the Feminine: The Union of Contrasts.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bouder, Annie

1997-01-01

The relationship between training and the employment of women in the 12 countries of the European Union (EU) was examined. An analysis of the distribution of the female population by training levels revealed that women in the Netherlands, Germany, and Denmark generally had the highest overall levels of training, whereas women in Spain and Portugal…

Costs of Conjunctivitis Outbreak, Réunion Island, France

PubMed Central

Pagès, Frederic; Wan, Guy-Noel Chan; Brottet, Elise; Vilain, Pascal

2018-01-01

During January–April 2015, a major outbreak of conjunctivitis on Réunion Island caused a large public health impact. On the basis of general practitioner consultations, emergency department visits, and eye medication sales during the 13-week epidemic, we estimated a total healthcare cost of €3,341,191 from the outbreak. PMID:29260662

General phase regularized reconstruction using phase cycling.

PubMed

Ong, Frank; Cheng, Joseph Y; Lustig, Michael

2018-07-01

To develop a general phase regularized image reconstruction method, with applications to partial Fourier imaging, water-fat imaging and flow imaging. The problem of enforcing phase constraints in reconstruction was studied under a regularized inverse problem framework. A general phase regularized reconstruction algorithm was proposed to enable various joint reconstruction of partial Fourier imaging, water-fat imaging and flow imaging, along with parallel imaging (PI) and compressed sensing (CS). Since phase regularized reconstruction is inherently non-convex and sensitive to phase wraps in the initial solution, a reconstruction technique, named phase cycling, was proposed to render the overall algorithm invariant to phase wraps. The proposed method was applied to retrospectively under-sampled in vivo datasets and compared with state of the art reconstruction methods. Phase cycling reconstructions showed reduction of artifacts compared to reconstructions without phase cycling and achieved similar performances as state of the art results in partial Fourier, water-fat and divergence-free regularized flow reconstruction. Joint reconstruction of partial Fourier + water-fat imaging + PI + CS, and partial Fourier + divergence-free regularized flow imaging + PI + CS were demonstrated. The proposed phase cycling reconstruction provides an alternative way to perform phase regularized reconstruction, without the need to perform phase unwrapping. It is robust to the choice of initial solutions and encourages the joint reconstruction of phase imaging applications. Magn Reson Med 80:112-125, 2018. © 2017 International Society for Magnetic Resonance in Medicine. © 2017 International Society for Magnetic Resonance in Medicine.

Clinical Approaches to Breast Reconstruction: What Is the Appropriate Reconstructive Procedure for My Patient?

PubMed

Dieterich, Max; Dragu, Adrian; Stachs, Angrit; Stubert, Johannes

2017-12-01

Breast reconstruction after breast cancer is an emotional subject for women. Consequently, the correct timing and surgical procedure for each individual woman are important. In general, heterologous or autologous reconstructive procedures are available, both having advantages and disadvantages. Breast size, patient habitus, and previous surgeries or radiation therapy need to be considered, independent of the chosen procedure. New surgical techniques, refinement of surgical procedures, and the development of supportive materials have increased the general patient collective eligible for breast reconstruction. This review highlights the different approaches to immediate breast reconstruction using autologous or heterologous techniques.

To Moscow with love: partial reconstruction of Vygotsky's trip to London.

PubMed

van der Veer, René; Zavershneva, Ekaterina

2011-12-01

The Russian psychologist Lev Vygotsky (1896-1934) left the Soviet Union only once to attend a conference on the education of the deaf in London. So far almost nothing was known about this trip, which took place in a period when Vygotsky was still completely unknown as a psychologist, both inside his own country and abroad. Making use of a newly discovered notebook, it proved possible to partially reconstruct Vygotsky's journey and stay in London. Vygotsky's very personal remarks show him to have been a very sensitive and spirited man, who was prey to strong emotions during the conference and afterwards. Rather surprisingly, Vygotsky's own paper about the education of the deaf was never presented during the conference and the stay in London appears to have had a limited value for his own scientific development.

12 CFR 709.4 - Powers and duties of liquidating agent.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-01-01

... desirable or expedient in its discretion to wind up the affairs of the credit union including, but not... Certified Public Accountants, and pay the costs out of the assets of the liquidated credit union; (4) Employ..., including, but not limited to, the costs and expenses of any litigation, as approved by the General Counsel...

12 CFR 709.4 - Powers and duties of liquidating agent.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-01-01

... desirable or expedient in its discretion to wind up the affairs of the credit union including, but not... Certified Public Accountants, and pay the costs out of the assets of the liquidated credit union; (4) Employ..., including, but not limited to, the costs and expenses of any litigation, as approved by the General Counsel...

12 CFR 709.4 - Powers and duties of liquidating agent.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-01-01

... desirable or expedient in its discretion to wind up the affairs of the credit union including, but not... Certified Public Accountants, and pay the costs out of the assets of the liquidated credit union; (4) Employ..., including, but not limited to, the costs and expenses of any litigation, as approved by the General Counsel...

12 CFR 702.206 - Net worth restoration plans.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... plans. (a) Schedule for filing—(1) Generally. A federally-insured credit union shall file a written net...) of this section. (c) Contents of NWRP. An NWRP must— (1) Specify— (i) A quarterly timetable of steps... reclassified to a lower category under § 702.102(b), the steps the credit union will take to correct the unsafe...

Reconstruction of midfoot bone and soft tissue loss with chimeric partial scapula and latissimus dorsi muscle flap and short perforator-based skin flap following gunshot injuries: Report of two cases.

PubMed

Ozcan Akcal, Arzu; Ünal, Kerim; Gorgulu, Tahsin; Akif Akcal, Mehmet; Bigat, Zekiye

2016-10-01

In this report we present two cases of gunshot injury related midfoot defects, reconstructed with a chimeric partial scapula and latissimus dorsi muscle flap and short perforator-based skin flap. The first case, a 14 years old male, had 10 × 8 cm medial plantar and 6 × 4 cm dorsal foot defects and the second case, a 55 years old female, had only 8 × 6 cm dorsal foot defect. In both cases the defects were associated with fractures, one with lateral cuneiform and cuboid with 90% bone loss and the other with navicular bone, respectively. After 6 months, the patients could walk well without support, and radiographs confirmed bony union. A chimeric partial scapula and latissimus dorsi muscle flap and short perforator-based skin flap may be used for the reconstruction of combined bony and soft tissue defects of the midfoot and to promote bone healing. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Microsurgery 36:598-603, 2016. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Local ROI Reconstruction via Generalized FBP and BPF Algorithms along More Flexible Curves.

PubMed

Yu, Hengyong; Ye, Yangbo; Zhao, Shiying; Wang, Ge

2006-01-01

We study the local region-of-interest (ROI) reconstruction problem, also referred to as the local CT problem. Our scheme includes two steps: (a) the local truncated normal-dose projections are extended to global dataset by combining a few global low-dose projections; (b) the ROI are reconstructed by either the generalized filtered backprojection (FBP) or backprojection-filtration (BPF) algorithms. The simulation results show that both the FBP and BPF algorithms can reconstruct satisfactory results with image quality in the ROI comparable to that of the corresponding global CT reconstruction.

Evaluation of functional outcomes and complications following modified Latarjet reconstruction in athletes with anterior shoulder instability

PubMed Central

van der Watt, Christelle; de Beer, Joe F

2015-01-01

Background The optimal management of anterior shoulder instability in athletes continues to be a challenge. The present study aimed to evaluate the functional outcomes of athletes with anterior shoulder instability following modified Latarjet reconstruction through assessing the timing of return to sport and complications. Methods Retrospective assessment was performed of athletes (n = 56) who presented with recurrent anterior shoulder instability and were treated with modified congruent arc Latarjet reconstruction over a 1-year period. Rugby union was the predominant sport performed. Pre-operative instability severity index scores were assessed. Postoperative complications were recorded as was the time taken for the athlete to return to sport. Results Arthroscopic evaluation revealed that 86% of patients had associated bony lesions affecting the glenohumeral joint. The overall complication rate relating to the Latarjet reconstruction was 7%. No episodes of recurrent shoulder instability were noted. Of the patients, 89% returned to competitive sport at the same level as that prior to surgery. The mean time post surgery to returning to full training was 3.2 months. Conclusions The modified congruent arc Latarjet procedure facilitates early rehabilitation and return to sport. These results support our systematic management protocol of performing modified Latarjet surgery in contact sport athletes with recurrent anterior instability. PMID:27582973

Union and section officer nominations for 1994-1996

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

The nominees listed below are those of the Union and Section nominating committees and have been approved by the AGU Council.Additional nominations may be made by membership petition. There are no age, nationality, or residence restrictions. All members except Associates are eligible to serve as officers. Petitions should be sent to the General Secretary, American Geophysical Union, 2000 Florida Avenue N.W., Washington, DC 20009. They must be received no later than July 19, 1993. Each petition must be accompanied by a letter from the proposed candidate agreeing to be a candidate and to serve if elected.

8. GENERAL INTERIOR VIEW OF FISH HATCHERY BUILDING, SHOWING INCUBATION ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

8. GENERAL INTERIOR VIEW OF FISH HATCHERY BUILDING, SHOWING INCUBATION TANKS. - Bonneville Project, Fish Hatchery, On Columbia River bordered on South by Union Pacific, Bonneville, Multnomah County, OR

Political legitimacy and European monetary union: contracts, constitutionalism and the normative logic of two-level games

PubMed Central

Bellamy, Richard; Weale, Albert

2015-01-01

ABSTRACT The crisis of the euro area has severely tested the political authority of the European Union (EU). The crisis raises questions of normative legitimacy both because the EU is a normative order and because the construction of economic and monetary union (EMU) rested upon a theory that stressed the normative value of the depoliticization of money. However, this theory neglected the normative logic of the two-level game implicit in EMU. It also neglected the need for an impartial and publically acceptable constitutional order to acknowledge reasonable disagreements. By contrast, we contend that any reconstruction of the EU's economic constitution has to pay attention to reconciling a European monetary order with the legitimacy of member state governance. The EU requires a two-level contract to meet this standard. Member states must treat each other as equals and be representative of and accountable to their citizens on an equitable basis. These criteria entail that the EU's political legitimacy requires a form of demoicracy that we call ‘republican intergovernmentalism’. Only rules that could be acceptable as the product of a political constitution among the peoples of Europe can ultimately meet the required standards of political legitimacy. Such a political constitution could be brought about through empowering national parliaments in EU decision-making. PMID:26924935

Political legitimacy and European monetary union: contracts, constitutionalism and the normative logic of two-level games.

PubMed

Bellamy, Richard; Weale, Albert

2015-02-07

The crisis of the euro area has severely tested the political authority of the European Union (EU). The crisis raises questions of normative legitimacy both because the EU is a normative order and because the construction of economic and monetary union (EMU) rested upon a theory that stressed the normative value of the depoliticization of money. However, this theory neglected the normative logic of the two-level game implicit in EMU. It also neglected the need for an impartial and publically acceptable constitutional order to acknowledge reasonable disagreements. By contrast, we contend that any reconstruction of the EU's economic constitution has to pay attention to reconciling a European monetary order with the legitimacy of member state governance. The EU requires a two-level contract to meet this standard. Member states must treat each other as equals and be representative of and accountable to their citizens on an equitable basis. These criteria entail that the EU's political legitimacy requires a form of demoi cracy that we call 'republican intergovernmentalism'. Only rules that could be acceptable as the product of a political constitution among the peoples of Europe can ultimately meet the required standards of political legitimacy. Such a political constitution could be brought about through empowering national parliaments in EU decision-making.

Surgical technique and clinical results for scapular allograft reconstruction following resection of scapular tumors.

PubMed

Zhang, Kaiwei; Duan, Hong; Xiang, Zhou; Tu, Chongqi

2009-04-01

Progress in developing effective surgical techniques, such as scapular allograft reconstruction, enhance shoulder stability and extremity function, in patients following scapular tumor resection. Case details from seven patients who underwent scapular allograft reconstruction following scapular tumor resection were reviewed. A wide marginal resection (partial scapulectomy) was performed in all patients and all affected soft tissues were resected to achieve a clean surgical margin. The glenoid-resected and glenoid-saved reconstructions were performed in three and four patients, respectively. The residual host scapula were fixed to the size-matched scapular allografts with plates and screws. The rotator cuff was affected frequently and was mostly resected. The deltoid and articular capsule were infrequently involved, but reconstructed preferentially. The remaining muscles were reattached to the allografts. The median follow-up was 26 months (range, 14-50 months). The average function scores were 24 points (80%) according to the International Society of Limb Salvage criteria. The range of active shoulder abduction and forward flexion motion were 40 degrees -110 degrees and 30 degrees -90 degrees, respectively. There was no difference between the glenoid-saved and glenoid-resected reconstructions in the total scores (mean, 24.5 points/81% versus 24 points/79%), but the glenoid-saved procedure was superior to the later in terms of abduction/flexion motion (mean, 72 degrees /61 degrees versus 55 degrees /43 degrees). During the study follow-up period, one patient died following a relapse, one patient lived despite of local recurrence, and five patients survived with no evidence of recurrence of the original cancer. Post-surgical complications such as shoulder dislocations, non-unions, and articular degeneration were not noted during this study period. Scapular allograft reconstruction had a satisfactory functional, cosmetic, and oncological outcome in this case series. Preservation and reconstruction of the articular capsule and deltoid are proposed to be a prerequisite for using scapular allografts and rotator cuff reconstruction is recommended, although technically challenging to perform.

Surgical technique and clinical results for scapular allograft reconstruction following resection of scapular tumors

PubMed Central

Zhang, Kaiwei; Duan, Hong; Xiang, Zhou; Tu, Chongqi

2009-01-01

Background Progress in developing effective surgical techniques, such as scapular allograft reconstruction, enhance shoulder stability and extremity function, in patients following scapular tumor resection. Methods Case details from seven patients who underwent scapular allograft reconstruction following scapular tumor resection were reviewed. A wide marginal resection (partial scapulectomy) was performed in all patients and all affected soft tissues were resected to achieve a clean surgical margin. The glenoid-resected and glenoid-saved reconstructions were performed in three and four patients, respectively. The residual host scapula were fixed to the size-matched scapular allografts with plates and screws. The rotator cuff was affected frequently and was mostly resected. The deltoid and articular capsule were infrequently involved, but reconstructed preferentially. The remaining muscles were reattached to the allografts. Results The median follow-up was 26 months (range, 14–50 months). The average function scores were 24 points (80%) according to the International Society of Limb Salvage criteria. The range of active shoulder abduction and forward flexion motion were 40°–110° and 30°–90°, respectively. There was no difference between the glenoid-saved and glenoid-resected reconstructions in the total scores (mean, 24.5 points/81% versus 24 points/79%), but the glenoid-saved procedure was superior to the later in terms of abduction/flexion motion (mean, 72°/61° versus 55°/43°). During the study follow-up period, one patient died following a relapse, one patient lived despite of local recurrence, and five patients survived with no evidence of recurrence of the original cancer. Post-surgical complications such as shoulder dislocations, non-unions, and articular degeneration were not noted during this study period. Conclusion Scapular allograft reconstruction had a satisfactory functional, cosmetic, and oncological outcome in this case series. Preservation and reconstruction of the articular capsule and deltoid are proposed to be a prerequisite for using scapular allografts and rotator cuff reconstruction is recommended, although technically challenging to perform. PMID:19338652

The Local Politics of Education Governance: Power and Influence among School Boards, Superintendents, and Teachers' Unions

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Zeehandelaar, Dara B.

2012-01-01

School districts have two general courses of action to maintain fiscal solvency and raise student achievement in the face of drastic funding cuts. They can reduce spending on teachers, a strategy opposed by many teachers' unions because it threatens teacher job security. They can also cut expenditures in other areas such as instructional…

Entrenched Enemies, Tactical Partners, or Steadfast Allies? Exploring the Fault Lines between Teacher Unions and Community Organizing in the United States

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Shirley, Dennis

2016-01-01

Teachers' unions and community organizing emerged out of shared collective struggles for social justice in the United States in the twentieth century. Beyond broad general aspirations for a better society, however, their interests and tactics have not always been compatible. This interpretive essay revisits three recent case studies of interaction…

Strategies for Working with Employers and Union Reps. How To Respond to Common Reasons for Not Hiring Women in NTOs.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wider Opportunities for Women, Inc., Washington, DC.

This paper provides tips for approaching employers and labor union representatives on the issue of hiring more women in nontraditional occupations, suggesting ways to respond to common excuses for not hiring women in such occupations. The paper first lists general strategies for developing a good working relationship with employers and union…

76 FR 27375 - Advisory Committee for the Study of Eastern Europe and the Independent States of the Former...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2011-05-11

... the Independent States of the Former Soviet Union (Title VIII) The Advisory Committee for the Study of Eastern Europe and the Independent States of the Former Soviet Union (Title VIII) will convene on Thursday... of the public may make oral statements concerning the Title VIII program in general. This meeting...

75 FR 21146 - Union Pacific Railroad Company-Trackage Rights Exemption-BNSF Railway Company

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2010-04-22

...--Burlington N., Inc., 354 I.C.C. 605 (1978), as modified in Mendocino Coast Ry.--Lease and Operate--Cal. W. R... pleading must be served on Mack H. Shumate, Jr., Senior General Attorney, Union Pacific Railroad Company... Web site at `` http://www.stb.dot.gov .'' Decided: April 19, 2010. By the Board, Rachel D. Campbell...

1. GENERAL EXTERIOR VIEW LOOKING SOUTH, SHOWING FACADE OF FISH ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

1. GENERAL EXTERIOR VIEW LOOKING SOUTH, SHOWING FACADE OF FISH HATCHERY BUILDING. - Bonneville Project, Fish Hatchery, On Columbia River bordered on South by Union Pacific, Bonneville, Multnomah County, OR

The Type of Breast Reconstruction May Not Influence Patient Satisfaction in the Chinese Population: A Single Institutional Experience

PubMed Central

Chen, Jiaying; Chen, Ying; Hu, Zhen; Liu, Guangyu; Shen, Zhenzhou; Shao, Zhimin; Wu, Jiong

2015-01-01

Background The goal of this study was to evaluate patient satisfaction with four common types of breast reconstruction performed at our institution: latissimus dorsi myocutaneous (LDM) flap reconstruction with or without implants, pedicled transverse rectus abdominis musculocutaneous (TRAM) flap reconstruction, and free deep inferior epigastric perforator (DIEP) flap reconstruction. Methods A custom survey consisting of questions that assessed general and aesthetic satisfaction was sent to patients who had undergone breast reconstruction in the last 5 years. The clinical data and details of the surgery were also collected from the patients who returned the surveys. We compared satisfaction rates across the four breast reconstruction types and analyzed the effects of various factors on overall general and aesthetic satisfaction rates using a binary logistic regression model. Result A total of 207 (72%) patients completed the questionnaires. Overall, significant differences in general and aesthetic satisfaction among the four procedures were not observed. A multivariate analysis revealed that the factor “complications” (p = 0.001) played a significant role in general satisfaction and that the factors “> 2 years since reconstruction” (p = 0.043) and “age > 35 years” (p = 0.05) played significant roles in overall aesthetic satisfaction. Conclusion The present study demonstrated that the type of breast reconstruction might not influence satisfaction in Chinese patients. PMID:26562294

A paradigm shift in the surgical reconstruction of extra-articular distal humeral fractures: single-column plating.

PubMed

Meloy, Gregory M; Mormino, Matthew A; Siska, Peter A; Tarkin, Ivan S

2013-11-01

The study aimed (1) to examine if there are equivalent results in terms of union, alignment and elbow functionally comparing single- to dual-column plating of AO/OTA 13A2 and A3 distal humeral fractures and (2) if there are more implant-related complications in patients managed with bicolumnar plating compared to single-column plate fixation. This was a multi-centred retrospective comparative study. The study was conducted at two academic level 1 trauma centres. A total of 105 patients were identified to have surgical management of extra-articular distal humeral fractures Arbeitsgemeinschaft für Osteosynthesefragen/Orthopaedic Trauma Association (AO/OTA) 13A2 and AO/OTA 13A3). Patients were treated with traditional dual-column plating or a single-column posterolateral small-fragment pre-contoured locking plate used as a neutralisation device with at least five screws in the short distal segment. The patients' elbow functionality was assessed in terms of range of motion, union and alignment. In addition, the rate of complications between the groups including radial nerve palsy, implant-related complications (painful prominence and/or ulnar nerve neuritis) and elbow stiffness were compared. Patients treated with single-column plating had similar union rates and alignment. However, single-column plating resulted in a significantly better range of motion with less complications. The current study suggests that exposure/instrumentation of only the lateral column is a reliable and preferred technique. This technique allows for comparable union rates and alignment with increased elbow functionality and decreased number of complications. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Local ROI Reconstruction via Generalized FBP and BPF Algorithms along More Flexible Curves

PubMed Central

Ye, Yangbo; Zhao, Shiying; Wang, Ge

2006-01-01

We study the local region-of-interest (ROI) reconstruction problem, also referred to as the local CT problem. Our scheme includes two steps: (a) the local truncated normal-dose projections are extended to global dataset by combining a few global low-dose projections; (b) the ROI are reconstructed by either the generalized filtered backprojection (FBP) or backprojection-filtration (BPF) algorithms. The simulation results show that both the FBP and BPF algorithms can reconstruct satisfactory results with image quality in the ROI comparable to that of the corresponding global CT reconstruction. PMID:23165018

Sparse Reconstruction Techniques in MRI: Methods, Applications, and Challenges to Clinical Adoption

PubMed Central

Yang, Alice Chieh-Yu; Kretzler, Madison; Sudarski, Sonja; Gulani, Vikas; Seiberlich, Nicole

2016-01-01

The family of sparse reconstruction techniques, including the recently introduced compressed sensing framework, has been extensively explored to reduce scan times in Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI). While there are many different methods that fall under the general umbrella of sparse reconstructions, they all rely on the idea that a priori information about the sparsity of MR images can be employed to reconstruct full images from undersampled data. This review describes the basic ideas behind sparse reconstruction techniques, how they could be applied to improve MR imaging, and the open challenges to their general adoption in a clinical setting. The fundamental principles underlying different classes of sparse reconstructions techniques are examined, and the requirements that each make on the undersampled data outlined. Applications that could potentially benefit from the accelerations that sparse reconstructions could provide are described, and clinical studies using sparse reconstructions reviewed. Lastly, technical and clinical challenges to widespread implementation of sparse reconstruction techniques, including optimization, reconstruction times, artifact appearance, and comparison with current gold-standards, are discussed. PMID:27003227

Use of vascularised free fibula in limb reconstruction (for non-malignant defects).

PubMed

Hameed, Shahid; Ehtesham-ul-haq, Rana Hassan Javaid; Ahmed, Rao Saood; Majid, Abdul; Waqas, Muhammad; Aslam, Ayesha; Yusuf, Omamah; Butt, Ahsin Masood; Ali, Ghazanfar

2013-12-01

The case series was conducted at the Department of Plastic Surgery, Combined Military Hospital, Rawalpindi, from June 2009 to May 2011, and comprised 19 patients in whom free fibula flap was performed for upper and lower limb reconstruction, using SPSS 16. Results showed that flap survival was 100%. One (5.2%) flap was re-explored for venous congestion and was salvaged. One (5.2%) patient of congenital pseudoarthrosis of tibia had a fracture of the fibula and was treated with external fixation. Average follow up was 8 months. Mean union time and full weight-bearing was 6.5 +/- 1.34 months (range 3-8 months) and 9 months, respectively. No recurrence of pseudoathrosis was observed until the last follow up, with only a 1.5 cm length discrepancy in one patient. The results proved that a microvascular free fibular flap heals rapidly, causes early functional recovery and it can be raised as an osteocutaneous flap.

Chest wall reconstruction in a canine model using polydioxanone mesh, demineralized bone matrix and bone marrow stromal cells.

PubMed

Tang, Hua; Xu, Zhifei; Qin, Xiong; Wu, Bin; Wu, Lihui; Zhao, XueWei; Li, Yulin

2009-07-01

Extensive chest wall defect reconstruction remains a challenging problem for surgeons. In the past several years, little progress has been made in this area. In this study, a biodegradable polydioxanone (PDO) mesh and demineralized bone matrix (DBM) seeded with osteogenically induced bone marrow stromal cells (BMSCs) were used to reconstruct a 6 cm x 5.5 cm chest wall defect. Four experimental groups were evaluated (n=6 per group): polydioxanone (PDO) mesh/DBMs/BMSCs group, polydioxanone (PDO) mesh/DBMs group, polydioxanone (PDO) mesh group, and a blank group (no materials) in a canine model. All the animals survived except those in the blank group. In all groups receiving biomaterial implants, the polydioxanone (PDO) mesh completely degraded at 24 weeks and was replaced by fibrous tissue with thickness close to that of the normal intercostal tissue (P>0.05). In the polydioxanone (PDO) mesh/DBMs/BMSCs group, new bone formation and bone-union were observed by radiographic and histological examination. More importantly, the reconstructed rib could maintain its original radian and achieve satisfactory biomechanics close to normal ribs in terms of bending stress (P>0.05). However, in the other two groups, fibrous tissue was observed in the defect and junctions, and the reconstructed ribs were easily distorted under an outer force. Based on these results, a surgical approach utilizing biodegradable polydioxanone (PDO) mesh in combination with DBMs and BMSCs could repair the chest wall defect not only in function but also in structure.

Self-determined motivation in rehabilitating professional rugby union players.

PubMed

Carson, Fraser; Polman, Remco C J

2017-01-01

The aim of the present study was to explore the views of professional rugby union players during the early rehabilitation, late rehabilitation and return to play stages, following anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury. A qualitative dominant, mixed methodological approach was utilized with five players who had suffered an ACL injury requiring reconstructive surgery. A longitudinal approach, concurrent with each player's rehabilitation, consisting of twice monthly interviews, a self-report diary and three established questionnaires (MOS-Social Support Survey, Sherbourne & Stewart, 1991; Sport Climate Questionnaire, Deci & Ryan, n.d.; Injury Rehabilitation Questionnaire, Deci & Ryan, n.d.) were completed. Theoretical thematic analysis was conducted on three distinct phases (Early Limited Participation phase, 10 higher order themes; Late Limited Rehabilitation phase, 11 higher order themes; and Return to Play phase, 9 higher order themes) and coded relating to autonomy, competence and relatedness. The findings suggest that increased autonomy and control assist emotional and behavioral responses during rehabilitation and return to play, while development of competence increases self-confidence.

SPIRiT: Iterative Self-consistent Parallel Imaging Reconstruction from Arbitrary k-Space

PubMed Central

Lustig, Michael; Pauly, John M.

2010-01-01

A new approach to autocalibrating, coil-by-coil parallel imaging reconstruction is presented. It is a generalized reconstruction framework based on self consistency. The reconstruction problem is formulated as an optimization that yields the most consistent solution with the calibration and acquisition data. The approach is general and can accurately reconstruct images from arbitrary k-space sampling patterns. The formulation can flexibly incorporate additional image priors such as off-resonance correction and regularization terms that appear in compressed sensing. Several iterative strategies to solve the posed reconstruction problem in both image and k-space domain are presented. These are based on a projection over convex sets (POCS) and a conjugate gradient (CG) algorithms. Phantom and in-vivo studies demonstrate efficient reconstructions from undersampled Cartesian and spiral trajectories. Reconstructions that include off-resonance correction and nonlinear ℓ1-wavelet regularization are also demonstrated. PMID:20665790

Prevalence of Body Dysmorphic Disorder Among Patients Seeking Breast Reconstruction.

PubMed

Metcalfe, Drew B; Duggal, Claire S; Gabriel, Allen; Nahabedian, Maurice Y; Carlson, Grant W; Losken, Albert

2014-07-01

Body dysmorphic disorder (BDD) is characterized by a preoccupation with a slight or imagined defect in physical appearance. It has significant implications for patients who desire breast reconstruction, because patient satisfaction with the aesthetic outcome is a substantial contributor to the success of the procedure. The authors estimated the prevalence of BDD among women seeking breast reconstruction by surveying patients with the previously validated Dysmorphic Concerns Questionnaire (DCQ). One hundred eighty-eight women who presented for immediate or delayed breast reconstruction completed the DCQ anonymously, during initial consultation with a plastic surgeon. Two groups of respondents were identified: those who desired immediate reconstruction and those who planned to undergo delayed reconstruction. The prevalence of BDD among breast reconstruction patients was compared between the 2 groups, and the overall prevalence was compared with published rates for the general public. Body dysmorphic disorder was significantly more prevalent in breast reconstruction patients than in the general population (17% vs 2%; P < .001). It also was much more common among patients who planned to undergo delayed (vs immediate) reconstruction (34% vs 13%; P = .004). Relative to the general public, significantly more women who sought breast reconstruction were diagnosed as having BDD. Awareness of the potential for BDD will enable clinicians to better understand their patients' perspectives and discuss realistic expectations at the initial consultation. Future studies are warranted to examine the implications of BDD on patient satisfaction with reconstructive surgery. 3. © 2014 The American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery, Inc.

75 FR 69080 - Federal Travel Regulation (FTR)

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2010-11-10

... GENERAL SERVICES ADMINISTRATION Federal Travel Regulation (FTR) Fly America Act; United States and European Union ``Open Skies'' Air Transport Agreement (US-EU Open Skies Agreement) AGENCY: Office of Governmentwide Policy, General Services Administration (GSA). [[Page 69081

General perspective view of the Grande Ronde River Bridge, view ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

General perspective view of the Grande Ronde River Bridge, view looking southeast - Grande Ronde River Bridge, Sprnning Grande Ronde River on Old Oregon Trail Highway (Oregon Route 6), La Grande, Union County, OR

General perspective view of the Grande Ronde River Bridge, view ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

General perspective view of the Grande Ronde River Bridge, view looking southwest - Grande Ronde River Bridge, Sprnning Grande Ronde River on Old Oregon Trail Highway (Oregon Route 6), La Grande, Union County, OR

2. GENERAL EXTERIOR VIEW OF FISH HATCHERY BUILDING LOOKING NORTH; ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

2. GENERAL EXTERIOR VIEW OF FISH HATCHERY BUILDING LOOKING NORTH; REINFORCED CONCRETE FISH PONDS IN FOREGROUND. - Bonneville Project, Fish Hatchery, On Columbia River bordered on South by Union Pacific, Bonneville, Multnomah County, OR

Theory and algorithms for image reconstruction on chords and within regions of interest

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zou, Yu; Pan, Xiaochuan; Sidky, Emilâ Y.

2005-11-01

We introduce a formula for image reconstruction on a chord of a general source trajectory. We subsequently develop three algorithms for exact image reconstruction on a chord from data acquired with the general trajectory. Interestingly, two of the developed algorithms can accommodate data containing transverse truncations. The widely used helical trajectory and other trajectories discussed in literature can be interpreted as special cases of the general trajectory, and the developed theory and algorithms are thus directly applicable to reconstructing images exactly from data acquired with these trajectories. For instance, chords on a helical trajectory are equivalent to the n-PI-line segments. In this situation, the proposed algorithms become the algorithms that we proposed previously for image reconstruction on PI-line segments. We have performed preliminary numerical studies, which include the study on image reconstruction on chords of two-circle trajectory, which is nonsmooth, and on n-PI lines of a helical trajectory, which is smooth. Quantitative results of these studies verify and demonstrate the proposed theory and algorithms.

Call for petition nominations for 1996-1998 Elections

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

The nominees listed below are those of the Union and Section nominating committees and have been approved by the AGU Council.Additional nominations may be made by membership petition. All nominees must be Members or Fellows of the Union. Each petition must be accompanied by a letter in which the proposed nominee agrees to be a candidate and to serve if elected. There are no age, nationality, residence, or other analogous restrictions on who may serve as an officer. Petitions should be sent to the General Secretary, American Geophysical Union, 2000 Florida Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20009. They must be received no later than July 21, 1995.

Segond Fractures Are Not a Risk Factor for Anterior Cruciate Ligament Reconstruction Failure.

PubMed

Gaunder, Christopher L; Bastrom, Tracey; Pennock, Andrew T

2017-12-01

Segond fractures may be identified when an anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) tear is diagnosed and likely represent an avulsion of the anterolateral ligament. It is currently unclear whether these fractures can be ignored at the time of ACL reconstruction or if they should be addressed surgically. To compare the incidence of Segond fractures in patients undergoing primary ACL reconstruction compared with those undergoing revision ACL reconstruction in an attempt to determine if the presence of a Segond fracture predisposes to ACL reconstruction failure. Cross-sectional study; Level of evidence, 3. A retrospective review of all patients undergoing primary or revision ACL reconstruction between 2007 and 2014 was performed. Demographic data (age, sex, body mass index), injury variables (acuity, mechanism of injury), and radiographic features (concomitant ligamentous injuries, growth plate status) were documented. Each Segond fracture was analyzed for its specific location, size, displacement, and healing using both radiographs and magnetic resonance imaging. Statistical analysis was performed using a P value of <.05. A total of 552 patients underwent primary ACL reconstruction, and 47 patients underwent revision ACL reconstruction who met inclusion criteria. The incidence of Segond fractures was 6% in the primary reconstruction group. The fracture fragment averaged 6.6 mm in height and 2.3 mm in width and was displaced a mean of 5.0 mm. The fracture fragment bed was localized at the tibial attachment site of the anterolateral ligament a mean 20.6 mm posterior to the Gerdy tubercle in nearly all patients. After ACL reconstruction, the Segond fracture healed in 90% of patients. The incidence of Segond fractures was 3 times as common in male patients ( P = .02); otherwise, its presence was not associated with any other demographic data, injury variables, or radiographic features ( P > .05). No patients undergoing revision surgery had a Segond fracture, and no patient with a Segond fracture had graft failure. Patients with a Segond fracture are at no higher risk to require revision ACL reconstruction compared with patients without a Segond fracture. This may be attributable to its high union rate. At the time of primary ACL reconstruction, if a Segond fracture is identified, it can be ignored (not repaired or reconstructed), and this approach does not appear to predispose to early ACL graft failure.

Parallel Reconstruction Using Null Operations (PRUNO)

PubMed Central

Zhang, Jian; Liu, Chunlei; Moseley, Michael E.

2011-01-01

A novel iterative k-space data-driven technique, namely Parallel Reconstruction Using Null Operations (PRUNO), is presented for parallel imaging reconstruction. In PRUNO, both data calibration and image reconstruction are formulated into linear algebra problems based on a generalized system model. An optimal data calibration strategy is demonstrated by using Singular Value Decomposition (SVD). And an iterative conjugate- gradient approach is proposed to efficiently solve missing k-space samples during reconstruction. With its generalized formulation and precise mathematical model, PRUNO reconstruction yields good accuracy, flexibility, stability. Both computer simulation and in vivo studies have shown that PRUNO produces much better reconstruction quality than autocalibrating partially parallel acquisition (GRAPPA), especially under high accelerating rates. With the aid of PRUO reconstruction, ultra high accelerating parallel imaging can be performed with decent image quality. For example, we have done successful PRUNO reconstruction at a reduction factor of 6 (effective factor of 4.44) with 8 coils and only a few autocalibration signal (ACS) lines. PMID:21604290

76 FR 16345 - Net Worth and Equity Ratio

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2011-03-23

... acquisition must be measured under generally accepted accounting principles as referenced in the Act. 12 U.S.C... equity or member interest in the acquirer. Generally accepted accounting principles require this excess... generally accepted accounting principles. For low income-designated credit unions, net worth also includes...

Management of unstable distal third clavicle fractures: clinical and radiological outcomes of the arthroscopy-assisted conoid ligament reconstruction and fracture cerclage with sutures.

PubMed

Cisneros, Luis Natera; Reiriz, Juan Sarasquete

2017-04-01

Surgical treatment is indicated for the management of Neer type IIB fractures of the distal third of the clavicle. The aim of this study was to assess the clinical and radiological outcomes, in cases of unstable distal third clavicle fractures managed by means of an arthroscopy-assisted conoid ligament reconstruction and fracture cerclage with sutures. Nine patients with unstable distal third clavicle fractures (Neer type IIB) managed arthroscopically by means of a conoid ligament reconstruction and fracture cerclage with sutures, between 2008 and 2012, were included. The QoL was evaluated at the last follow-up visit, by means of the Health Survey questionnaire (SF36), the visual analogue scale (VAS) for pain, the Disabilities of the Arm, Shoulder and Hand (DASH) questionnaire, the constant score, and a Global Satisfaction scale (from 0 to 10). The mean time from fracture fixation until radiological union, the development of hardware loosening, nonunion, infections, and hardware skin discomfort were evaluated. The mean age was 36 [21-48] years old. The mean [range] time from surgery until the last follow-up visit was 49 [46-52] months. Values of the questionnaires assessed at the last follow-up visit were: (1) physical SF36 score (50.72 ± 6.88); (2) mental SF36 score (50.92 ± 11.65); (3) VAS for pain (1.86 ± 1.35); (4) DASH questionnaire (11.97 ± 7.03); (5) constant score (89.67 ± 8.55), and (6) Global Satisfaction (8.17 ± 0.98). The mean time elapsed from fracture fixation to radiological union was 8.41 ± 3.26 months. Hardware loosening was observed in none of the patients. Nonunion was observed in 11.11% (1/9) of the patients. Hardware skin discomfort was observed in 11.11% (1/9) of the patients. Patients with unstable distal third clavicle fractures managed by means of an arthroscopy-assisted conoid ligament reconstruction and fracture cerclage with sutures may have good clinical and radiological outcomes, with no need for a second surgical procedure to remove any metal hardware. Therapeutic; case series, Level IV.

9. GENERAL EXTERIOR VIEW LOOKING NORTH, SHOWING FORMER FISH HATCHERY ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

9. GENERAL EXTERIOR VIEW LOOKING NORTH, SHOWING FORMER FISH HATCHERY OFFICE BUILDING (PRESENTLY USED AS GARDENER'S OFFICE). - Bonneville Project, Fish Hatchery, On Columbia River bordered on South by Union Pacific, Bonneville, Multnomah County, OR

Cone and trumpet concentrators in light of the general edge-ray theorem

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ries, Harald; Spirkl, Wolfgang; Winston, Roland

1995-08-01

Cone and trumpet are nonimaging concentrators which do not obey the traditional edge-ray principle. The latter states that edge rays from the source should be transferred to the edge of the target. These concentrators have traditionally been described in terms of the heuristic flow line principle. The edge-ray theorem has been generalized to include nonimaging reflectors with multiple reflections. One includes all multiply reflected rays as an auxiliary domain. The general edge-ray theorem then states that the edge rays to the union of source and auxiliary domain must be reflected to edge of the union of target and auxiliary domain by the first reflection. We show the setup for which cone and trumpet constitute perfect nonimaging concentrators in the light of the generalized edge-ray theorem. We discuss the cases where cones are very good approximations for the solutions of nonimaging problems.

Foreword

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tanzi, Tullio Joseph; Chandra, Madhu

2018-01-01

URSI (Union Radio-scientifique internationale) is a renowned worldwide body under the umbrella of the International Council for Science, formerly International Council of Scientific Unions (ICSU). This scientific society has a longstanding tradition of fostering and coordinating, on an international basis, scientific studies, research, applications, exchanges, and communication in the fields of radio science and, more generally, on all aspects of electromagnetism. One of the URSI's roles is to promote research using interdisciplinary and multidisciplinary resources.

Needed: A Twenty-First Century Vision for Economic Assistance

DTIC Science & Technology

1993-04-01

Soviet Union) toward market economies and democratic political systems; and "o Confronting global issues and trends: To address global forces leading...Union, U.S. investment is important for these countries’ successful transitions to market economies. On global issues , U.S. business can offer...to global issues , many of the states involved in active or potential regional conflicts or in democratic transitions need help to avoid general

Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction

DTIC Science & Technology

2012-04-30

SIGAR SPECIAL INSPECTOR GENERAL FOR AFGHANISTAN RECONSTRUCTION 2530 Crystal Drive Arlington, VA 22202 SIG A R | Q U A R TE R LY R E P O R T TO...TH E U N ITE D STA TE S C O N G R E SS | A P R 30, 2012 Special Inspector General for Afghanistan ReconstructionSIGAR APR 302012 QUARTERLY REPORT...population. (© AFP 2012, Johannes Eisele) An Afghan schoolboy washes his face at a water-pump in Mazar- e Sharif in Balkh prov- ince on April 9. Last

[Labour History in Manitoba, Canada.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Manitoba Social Science Teacher, 1994

1994-01-01

Devoted to the Winnipeg General Strike in 1919, this document provides social science teachers with details of the strike as well as general information on teaching about unions, labor, and working-class history. The first article, "The Winnipeg General Strike" (Doug Smith), presents the events during and prior to the Winnipeg General…

Early Warning System: a juridical notion to be built

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lucarelli, A.

2007-12-01

Early warning systems (EWS) are becoming effective tools for real time mitigation of the harmful effects arising from widely different hazards, which range from famine to financial crisis, malicious attacks, industrial accidents, natural catastrophes, etc. Early warning of natural catastrophic events allows to implement both alert systems and real time prevention actions for the safety of people and goods exposed to the risk However the effective implementation of early warning methods is hindered by the lack of a specific juridical frame. Under a juridical point of view, in fact, EWS and in general all the activities of prevention need a careful regulation, mainly with regards to responsibility and possible compensation for damage caused by the implemented actions. A preventive alarm, in fact, has an active influence on infrastructures in control of public services which in turn will suffer suspensions or interruptions because of the early warning actions. From here it is necessary to possess accurate normative references related to the typology of structures or infrastructures upon which the activity of readiness acts; the progressive order of suspension of public services; the duration of these suspensions; the corporate bodies or administrations that are competent to assume such decisions; the actors responsible for the consequences of false alarm, missed or delayed alarms; the mechanisms of compensation for damage; the insurance systems; etc In the European Union EWS are often quoted as preventive methods of mitigation of the risk. Nevertheless, a juridical notion of EWS of general use is not available. In fact, EW is a concept that finds application in many different circles, each of which require specific adaptations, and may concern subjects for which the European Union doesn't have exclusive competence as may be the responsibility of the member states to assign the necessary regulations. In so far as the juridical arrangement of the EWS, this must be brought back to the general normative context predisposed by every state for the accomplishment of the service of civil protection. In synthesis: EWS are one of the activities engaged in disaster mitigation. Apart from the situation of trans national events, in which case the European Union has an important function in coordination, the activities of prevention are developed in individual states by their own civil protection systems. They are based on the principle of collaboration between the central government and the regional and local authorities, as these are the forms administration organization that are closer to the people and to emergency territorial needs. That being stated, the configuration of the EWS as typology having juridical importance is the result of an reconstructing operation based on elements of positive law and on an interpretative and researching activity able to furnish de iure condendo alternative solutions to the problems that the application of the typology can involve.

Revision Anterior Cruciate Ligament Reconstruction

PubMed Central

Wilde, Jeffrey; Bedi, Asheesh; Altchek, David W.

2014-01-01

Context: Reconstruction of the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) is one of the most common surgical procedures, with more than 200,000 ACL tears occurring annually. Although primary ACL reconstruction is a successful operation, success rates still range from 75% to 97%. Consequently, several thousand revision ACL reconstructions are performed annually and are unfortunately associated with inferior clinical outcomes when compared with primary reconstructions. Evidence Acquisition: Data were obtained from peer-reviewed literature through a search of the PubMed database (1988-2013) as well as from textbook chapters and surgical technique papers. Study Design: Clinical review. Level of Evidence: Level 4. Results: The clinical outcomes after revision ACL reconstruction are largely based on level IV case series. Much of the existing literature is heterogenous with regard to patient populations, primary and revision surgical techniques, concomitant ligamentous injuries, and additional procedures performed at the time of the revision, which limits generalizability. Nevertheless, there is a general consensus that the outcomes for revision ACL reconstruction are inferior to primary reconstruction. Conclusion: Excellent results can be achieved with regard to graft stability, return to play, and functional knee instability but are generally inferior to primary ACL reconstruction. A staged approach with autograft reconstruction is recommended in any circumstance in which a single-stage approach results in suboptimal graft selection, tunnel position, graft fixation, or biological milieu for tendon-bone healing. Strength-of-Recommendation Taxonomy (SORT): Good results may still be achieved with regard to graft stability, return to play, and functional knee instability, but results are generally inferior to primary ACL reconstruction: Level B. PMID:25364483

Magma chamber history related to the shield building stage of Piton des Neiges volcano, La Réunion Island

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Berthod, Carole; Michon, Laurent; Famin, Vincent; Bascou, Jérôme; Bachelery, Patrick

2016-04-01

Piton des Neiges volcano (La Réunion hotspot) experienced a long-lasting shield building stage before entering its degenerative stage 0.4 my ago. The deep edifice incision due to the intense tropical erosion allowed the description for several decades of a layered gabbroic complex interpreted as a piece of magma chamber, which has been tectonically displaced (Chevallier & Vatin-Perignon, 1982; Upton & Wadsworth, 1972). Here, we combine field investigations, petrographic, mineralogical, geochemical and anisotropy of magnetic susceptibility (AMS) studies to constrain the spatial distribution of the plutonic complex, to identify the physical and chemical processes and to integrate this complex in the evolution of Piton des Neiges (PdN). Field investigations allowed us to discover three additional massifs of gabbro and peridotite along the Mât River. The four massifs are overlaid by a pile of basic sills and a breccia interpreted as a debris avalanche deposit. Albeit spatially disconnected, the massifs show a relatively constant dip of the magnetic foliation toward the current summit of the volcano (i.e. toward the SSE). The two massifs cropping in the upper Mât River are exclusively composed of massive dunite and wherlite units with a cumulate texture and no visible dynamic structures. The two massifs located in the lower Mât River are made of olivine-gabbro, ferrogabbro and gabbro showing numerous flow structures and synmagmatic faults that indicates instabilities which trend NNW-SSE. Minerals (olivine, clinopyroxene and oxide) present primitive compositions in the two upper massifs and slightly differentiated ones in the lower massif. Given the consistency of our dataset, we propose that the four massifs correspond to outcrops of a unique chemically stratified magma chamber, whose center would have been located about 4 km North of the current summit of PdN. The existence of an initial PdN, North of the current edifice, is supported by morphological reconstruction, gravimetric data (Gailler & Lénat, 2012) and submarine sedimentation (Lebas, 2012). It would have been built prior to 2 Ma and subsequently experienced a large north-directed destabilization. The PdN volcano later reconstructed south of the initial magmatic centre. Chevallier, L., & Vatin-Perignon, N. (1982). Volcano-structural evolution of Piton des Neiges, Reunion Island, Indian Ocean. Bulletin of Volcanology, 45(4), 285-298. Gailler, L.-S., & Lénat, J.-F. (2012). Internal architecture of La Réunion (Indian Ocean) inferred from geophysical data. Journal of Volcanology and Geothermal Research, 221-222(C), 83-98. http://doi.org/10.1016/j.jvolgeores.2012.01.015 Lebas, E. (2012). Processus de démantèlement des édifices volcaniques au cours de leur évolution : Application à La Réunion et Montserrat et comparaison avec d'autres édifices. Unpublished PhD Thesis, 1-379. Upton, B. G. J., & Wadsworth, W. (1972). Peridotitic and gabbroic rocks associated with the shield-forming lavas of Réunion. Contributions to Mineralogy and Petrology, 35, 139-158.

Uncertainty based pressure reconstruction from velocity measurement with generalized least squares

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, Jiacheng; Scalo, Carlo; Vlachos, Pavlos

2017-11-01

A method using generalized least squares reconstruction of instantaneous pressure field from velocity measurement and velocity uncertainty is introduced and applied to both planar and volumetric flow data. Pressure gradients are computed on a staggered grid from flow acceleration. The variance-covariance matrix of the pressure gradients is evaluated from the velocity uncertainty by approximating the pressure gradient error to a linear combination of velocity errors. An overdetermined system of linear equations which relates the pressure and the computed pressure gradients is formulated and then solved using generalized least squares with the variance-covariance matrix of the pressure gradients. By comparing the reconstructed pressure field against other methods such as solving the pressure Poisson equation, the omni-directional integration, and the ordinary least squares reconstruction, generalized least squares method is found to be more robust to the noise in velocity measurement. The improvement on pressure result becomes more remarkable when the velocity measurement becomes less accurate and more heteroscedastic. The uncertainty of the reconstructed pressure field is also quantified and compared across the different methods.

Should fractures in massive intercalary bone allografts of the lower limb be treated with ORIF or with a new allograft?

PubMed

Aponte-Tinao, Luis A; Ayerza, Miguel A; Muscolo, D Luis; Farfalli, Germán L

2015-03-01

Massive bone allografts have been used for limb salvage of bone tumor resections as an alternative to endoprostheses, although they have different outcomes and risks. There is no general consensus about when to use these alternatives, but when it is possible to save the native joints after the resection of a long bone tumor, intercalary allografts offer some advantages despite complications, such as fracture. The management and outcomes of this complication deserve more study. The purposes of this study were to (1) analyze the fracture frequency in a group of patients treated with massive intercalary bone allografts of the femur and tibia; (2) compare the results of allografts treated with open reduction and internal fixation (ORIF) with those treated with resection and repeat allograft reconstruction; and (3) determine the likelihood that treatment of a fracture resulted in a healed intercalary reconstruction. We reviewed patients treated with intercalary bone allografts between 1991 and 2011. During this period, patients were generally treated with intercalary allografts when after tumor resection at least 1 cm of residual epiphysis remained to allow fixation of the osteotomy junction. To obtain a homogeneous group of patients, we excluded allograft-prosthesis composites and osteoarticular and hemicylindrical intercalary allografts from this study. We analyzed the fracture rate of 135 patients reconstructed with segmental intercalary bone allografts of the lower extremities (98 femurs and 37 tibias). In patients whose grafts fractured were treated either by internal fixation or a second allograft, ORIF generally was attempted but after early failures in femur fractures, these fractures were treated with a second allograft. Using a chart review, we ascertained the frequency of osseous union, complications, and reoperations after the treatment of fractured intercalary allografts. Followup was at a mean of 101 months (range, 24-260 months); of the original 135 patients, no patient was lost to followup. At latest followup, 19 patients (14%) had an allograft fracture (16 femurs [16%] and three tibias [8%]). Six patients were treated with internal fixation and addition of autologous graft (three femurs and three tibias) and 13 patients were treated with a second intercalary allograft (13 femurs). The three patients with femoral allograft fractures treated with internal fixation and autologous grafts failed and were treated with a second allograft, whereas those patients with tibia allograft fractures treated by the same procedure healed without secondary complications. When we analyzed the 16 patients with a second intercalary allograft (13 as primary treatment of the fracture and three as secondary treatment of the fracture), five failed (31%) and were treated with resection of the allograft and reconstructed with an endoprosthesis (four patients) or an osteoarticular allograft (one patient). Fractures of intercalary allografts of the tibia could successfully be treated with internal fixation and autologous iliac crest bone graft; however, this treatment failed when used for femur allograft fractures. Femoral fractures could be treated with resection and repeat allograft reconstruction, however, with a higher refracture frequency. The addition of a vascularized fibular graft in the second attempt should be considered. Level IV, therapeutic study. See the Guidelines for Authors for a complete description of levels of evidence.

1. General view of stockyards from livestock exchange building showing ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

1. General view of stockyards from livestock exchange building showing (l-r) cattle pens and Buckingham Road, which terminates at "L" Street. View to north. - South Omaha Union Stock Yards, 2900 "O" Plaza, Omaha, Douglas County, NE

1. GENERAL VIEW FROM NORTH SIDE OF RIVER LOOKING SOUTHEAST ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

1. GENERAL VIEW FROM NORTH SIDE OF RIVER LOOKING SOUTHEAST OVER ENGINE REPAIR HOUSE, DINKY LEVELS VISIBLE IN DISTANCE - Harbison-Walker Refractories Company, Engine Repair House, West end of Shirley Street, Mount Union, Huntingdon County, PA

Wavelet modeling and prediction of the stability of states: the Roman Empire and the European Union

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yaroshenko, Tatyana Y.; Krysko, Dmitri V.; Dobriyan, Vitalii; Zhigalov, Maksim V.; Vos, Hendrik; Vandenabeele, Peter; Krysko, Vadim A.

2015-09-01

How can the stability of a state be quantitatively determined and its future stability predicted? The rise and collapse of empires and states is very complex, and it is exceedingly difficult to understand and predict it. Existing theories are usually formulated as verbal models and, consequently, do not yield sharply defined, quantitative prediction that can be unambiguously validated with data. Here we describe a model that determines whether the state is in a stable or chaotic condition and predicts its future condition. The central model, which we test, is that growth and collapse of states is reflected by the changes of their territories, populations and budgets. The model was simulated within the historical societies of the Roman Empire (400 BC to 400 AD) and the European Union (1957-2007) by using wavelets and analysis of the sign change of the spectrum of Lyapunov exponents. The model matches well with the historical events. During wars and crises, the state becomes unstable; this is reflected in the wavelet analysis by a significant increase in the frequency ω (t) and wavelet coefficients W (ω, t) and the sign of the largest Lyapunov exponent becomes positive, indicating chaos. We successfully reconstructed and forecasted time series in the Roman Empire and the European Union by applying artificial neural network. The proposed model helps to quantitatively determine and forecast the stability of a state.

Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction

DTIC Science & Technology

2010-07-30

GENERAL FOR IRAQ RECONSTRUCTION RECONSTRUCTION FUNDING SOURCES AND USES for artificial insemination .556The donations were part of an $83,000 program...229 Satellite offices have been re-designated as “Forward Presences.” As of June 30, there were 15 “Forward Presences,” down from 22 satellite ...mobile phone license. According Satellite image of the al-Mamoon Exchange and Telecommunications Center taken on July 3, 2010. (OrbView photo, copyright

Nominations for officers 1984-1986

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

The following nominees were presented by the Union and section nominating committees and were accepted by the Council:Members of AGU are invited to submit additional nominees by petition in accordance with the bylaws. Each petition must be signed by at least 1% of the voting members of the Union or section, as the case may be, and such petitions must be received by the General Secretary by September 15, 1983. The number of names required to make a petition nomination is as follows: Union, 151; Geodesy, 6; Geomagnetism and Paleomagnetism, 7; Hydrology, 26; Atmospheric Sciences, 11; Ocean Sciences, 21; Planetology, 7; Seismology, 15; Solar-Planetary Relationships, 18; Tectonophysics, 15; and Volcanology, Geochemistry, and Petrology, 16.

Extending Three-Dimensional Weighted Cone Beam Filtered Backprojection (CB-FBP) Algorithm for Image Reconstruction in Volumetric CT at Low Helical Pitches

PubMed Central

Hsieh, Jiang; Nilsen, Roy A.; McOlash, Scott M.

2006-01-01

A three-dimensional (3D) weighted helical cone beam filtered backprojection (CB-FBP) algorithm (namely, original 3D weighted helical CB-FBP algorithm) has already been proposed to reconstruct images from the projection data acquired along a helical trajectory in angular ranges up to [0, 2 π]. However, an overscan is usually employed in the clinic to reconstruct tomographic images with superior noise characteristics at the most challenging anatomic structures, such as head and spine, extremity imaging, and CT angiography as well. To obtain the most achievable noise characteristics or dose efficiency in a helical overscan, we extended the 3D weighted helical CB-FBP algorithm to handle helical pitches that are smaller than 1: 1 (namely extended 3D weighted helical CB-FBP algorithm). By decomposing a helical over scan with an angular range of [0, 2π + Δβ] into a union of full scans corresponding to an angular range of [0, 2π], the extended 3D weighted function is a summation of all 3D weighting functions corresponding to each full scan. An experimental evaluation shows that the extended 3D weighted helical CB-FBP algorithm can improve noise characteristics or dose efficiency of the 3D weighted helical CB-FBP algorithm at a helical pitch smaller than 1: 1, while its reconstruction accuracy and computational efficiency are maintained. It is believed that, such an efficient CB reconstruction algorithm that can provide superior noise characteristics or dose efficiency at low helical pitches may find its extensive applications in CT medical imaging. PMID:23165031

47 CFR 13.3 - Definitions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-10-01

... 47 Telecommunication 1 2012-10-01 2012-10-01 false Definitions. 13.3 Section 13.3 Telecommunication FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION GENERAL COMMERCIAL RADIO OPERATORS General § 13.3 Definitions... Telecommunication Union. (g) PPC. Proof-of-Passing Certificate. (h) Question pool. All current examination questions...

PI-line-based image reconstruction in helical cone-beam computed tomography with a variable pitch.

PubMed

Zou, Yu; Pan, Xiaochuan; Xia, Dan; Wang, Ge

2005-08-01

Current applications of helical cone-beam computed tomography (CT) involve primarily a constant pitch where the translating speed of the table and the rotation speed of the source-detector remain constant. However, situations do exist where it may be more desirable to use a helical scan with a variable translating speed of the table, leading a variable pitch. One of such applications could arise in helical cone-beam CT fluoroscopy for the determination of vascular structures through real-time imaging of contrast bolus arrival. Most of the existing reconstruction algorithms have been developed only for helical cone-beam CT with constant pitch, including the backprojection-filtration (BPF) and filtered-backprojection (FBP) algorithms that we proposed previously. It is possible to generalize some of these algorithms to reconstruct images exactly for helical cone-beam CT with a variable pitch. In this work, we generalize our BPF and FBP algorithms to reconstruct images directly from data acquired in helical cone-beam CT with a variable pitch. We have also performed a preliminary numerical study to demonstrate and verify the generalization of the two algorithms. The results of the study confirm that our generalized BPF and FBP algorithms can yield exact reconstruction in helical cone-beam CT with a variable pitch. It should be pointed out that our generalized BPF algorithm is the only algorithm that is capable of reconstructing exactly region-of-interest image from data containing transverse truncations.

Quasi interpolation with Voronoi splines.

PubMed

Mirzargar, Mahsa; Entezari, Alireza

2011-12-01

We present a quasi interpolation framework that attains the optimal approximation-order of Voronoi splines for reconstruction of volumetric data sampled on general lattices. The quasi interpolation framework of Voronoi splines provides an unbiased reconstruction method across various lattices. Therefore this framework allows us to analyze and contrast the sampling-theoretic performance of general lattices, using signal reconstruction, in an unbiased manner. Our quasi interpolation methodology is implemented as an efficient FIR filter that can be applied online or as a preprocessing step. We present visual and numerical experiments that demonstrate the improved accuracy of reconstruction across lattices, using the quasi interpolation framework. © 2011 IEEE

One-stage posterior approaches for treatment of thoracic spinal infection: Transforaminal and costotransversectomy, compared with anterior approach with posterior instrumentation.

PubMed

Kao, Fu-Cheng; Tsai, Tsung-Ting; Niu, Chi-Chien; Lai, Po-Liang; Chen, Lih-Huei; Chen, Wen-Jer

2017-10-01

Treating thoracic infective spondylodiscitis with anterior surgical approaches carry a relatively high risk of perioperative and postoperative complications. Posterior approaches have been reported to result in lower complication rates than anterior procedures, but more evidence is needed to demonstrate the safety and efficacy of 1-stage posterior approaches for treating infectious thoracic spondylodiscitis.Preoperative and postoperative clinical data, of 18 patients who underwent 2 types of 1-stage posterior procedures, costotransversectomy and transforaminal thoracic interbody debridement and fusion and 7 patients who underwent anterior debridement and reconstruction with posterior instrumentation, were retrospectively assessed.The clinical outcomes of patients treated with 1-stage posterior approaches were generally good, with good infection control, back pain relief, kyphotic angle correction, and either partial or solid union for fusion status. Furthermore, they achieved shorter surgical time, fewer postoperative complications, and shorter hospital stay than the patients underwent anterior debridement with posterior instrumentation.The results suggested that treating thoracic spondylodiscitis with a single-stage posterior approach might prevent postoperative complications and avoid respiratory problems associated with anterior approaches. Single-stage posterior approaches would be recommended for thoracic spine infection, especially for patients with medical comorbidities.

Long-Term Follow-Up of Quality of Life following DIEP Flap Breast Reconstruction.

PubMed

Hunsinger, Vincent; Hivelin, Mikael; Derder, Mohamed; Klein, Delphine; Velten, Michel; Lantieri, Laurent

2016-05-01

Sequelae resulting from breast cancer negatively impact patients' quality of life. Although the deep inferior epigastric perforator (DIEP) flap has become a standard for autologous breast reconstruction, there are limited data regarding long-term quality of life. The authors studied patients' quality of life more than 5 years after DIEP flap breast reconstruction and compare it with two French reference samples. A cross-sectional study of quality of life was performed in women who underwent DIEP flap breast reconstruction between 1995 and 2007 using the Medical Outcomes Study 36-Item Health Survey (Short Form-36). The first reference sample included subjects from the French general population (n = 3308), and the second included cancer survivors who underwent mastectomy with (n = 70) or without (n = 135) breast reconstruction. One hundred eleven respondents were analyzed among 186 eligible women. The mean follow-up period after reconstruction was 8.6 years (range, 5 to 15 years). There were no statistically significant differences in the quality of life between women from 45 to 64 years old who underwent DIEP flap breast reconstruction and from the French general population. Five of the eight Short Form-36 dimensions were significantly better in the DIEP flap breast reconstruction group in the 65- to 74-year-old cohort. In addition, quality of life of our study population was significantly higher than that of women who underwent mastectomy with or without any type of breast reconstruction. These results indicate that DIEP flap breast reconstruction allows patients with breast cancer to maintain a good postoperative quality of life comparable to that of the general population. Therapeutic, III.

Skin-sparing mastectomy: a survey based approach to defining standard of care.

PubMed

Shen, Jeannie; Ellenhorn, Joshua; Qian, Dajun; Kulber, David; Aronowitz, Joel

2008-10-01

Skin-sparing mastectomy (SSM) followed by immediate reconstruction has been advocated as an effective treatment option for patients with early-stage breast carcinoma. It markedly improves the quality of breast reconstruction through preservation of the natural skin envelope and a smaller incision. The purpose of this study was to investigate general surgeons' attitudes towards SSM. A postal questionnaire survey of California general surgeons was conducted regarding SSM. Of 370 respondents who stated they performed breast cancer surgery, 331 perform mastectomy for cancer with planned immediate reconstruction. Ninety per cent of respondents did not feel that SSM resulted in higher rates of local recurrence. In addition, 70 per cent felt that the cosmetic results of immediate breast reconstruction after SSM were better than those after a standard mastectomy. Despite this, only 61 per cent perform SSM in most cases when immediate breast reconstruction is planned. The majority of general surgeons perform SSM and therefore it should be considered standard of care. Despite a growing body of literature demonstrating high rates of patient satisfaction and long-term oncologic safety with SSM, there remains significant variation in practice patterns among general surgeons. Additional effort in general surgery education regarding the feasibility and safety of SSM is needed.

Multiresolution Iterative Reconstruction in High-Resolution Extremity Cone-Beam CT

PubMed Central

Cao, Qian; Zbijewski, Wojciech; Sisniega, Alejandro; Yorkston, John; Siewerdsen, Jeffrey H; Stayman, J Webster

2016-01-01

Application of model-based iterative reconstruction (MBIR) to high resolution cone-beam CT (CBCT) is computationally challenging because of the very fine discretization (voxel size <100 µm) of the reconstructed volume. Moreover, standard MBIR techniques require that the complete transaxial support for the acquired projections is reconstructed, thus precluding acceleration by restricting the reconstruction to a region-of-interest. To reduce the computational burden of high resolution MBIR, we propose a multiresolution Penalized-Weighted Least Squares (PWLS) algorithm, where the volume is parameterized as a union of fine and coarse voxel grids as well as selective binning of detector pixels. We introduce a penalty function designed to regularize across the boundaries between the two grids. The algorithm was evaluated in simulation studies emulating an extremity CBCT system and in a physical study on a test-bench. Artifacts arising from the mismatched discretization of the fine and coarse sub-volumes were investigated. The fine grid region was parameterized using 0.15 mm voxels and the voxel size in the coarse grid region was varied by changing a downsampling factor. No significant artifacts were found in either of the regions for downsampling factors of up to 4×. For a typical extremities CBCT volume size, this downsampling corresponds to an acceleration of the reconstruction that is more than five times faster than a brute force solution that applies fine voxel parameterization to the entire volume. For certain configurations of the coarse and fine grid regions, in particular when the boundary between the regions does not cross high attenuation gradients, downsampling factors as high as 10× can be used without introducing artifacts, yielding a ~50× speedup in PWLS. The proposed multiresolution algorithm significantly reduces the computational burden of high resolution iterative CBCT reconstruction and can be extended to other applications of MBIR where computationally expensive, high-fidelity forward models are applied only to a sub-region of the field-of-view. PMID:27694701

WE-FG-207B-05: Iterative Reconstruction Via Prior Image Constrained Total Generalized Variation for Spectral CT

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

Niu, S; Zhang, Y; Ma, J

Purpose: To investigate iterative reconstruction via prior image constrained total generalized variation (PICTGV) for spectral computed tomography (CT) using fewer projections while achieving greater image quality. Methods: The proposed PICTGV method is formulated as an optimization problem, which balances the data fidelity and prior image constrained total generalized variation of reconstructed images in one framework. The PICTGV method is based on structure correlations among images in the energy domain and high-quality images to guide the reconstruction of energy-specific images. In PICTGV method, the high-quality image is reconstructed from all detector-collected X-ray signals and is referred as the broad-spectrum image. Distinctmore » from the existing reconstruction methods applied on the images with first order derivative, the higher order derivative of the images is incorporated into the PICTGV method. An alternating optimization algorithm is used to minimize the PICTGV objective function. We evaluate the performance of PICTGV on noise and artifacts suppressing using phantom studies and compare the method with the conventional filtered back-projection method as well as TGV based method without prior image. Results: On the digital phantom, the proposed method outperforms the existing TGV method in terms of the noise reduction, artifacts suppression, and edge detail preservation. Compared to that obtained by the TGV based method without prior image, the relative root mean square error in the images reconstructed by the proposed method is reduced by over 20%. Conclusion: The authors propose an iterative reconstruction via prior image constrained total generalize variation for spectral CT. Also, we have developed an alternating optimization algorithm and numerically demonstrated the merits of our approach. Results show that the proposed PICTGV method outperforms the TGV method for spectral CT.« less

Permian deposition in the north central Brooks Range, Alaska Constraints for tectonic reconstructions

USGS Publications Warehouse

Adams, K.E.; Mull, C.G.; Crowder, R.K.

1997-01-01

Two opposing tectonic models have been offered to explain the regional structural relations in the north central Brooks Range fold-thrust belt of northern Alaska. The first suggests that rocks of the northern Endicott Mountains were thrust from south to north over the area of the present Mount Doonerak high and are therefore highly allochthonous. The second implies that the rocks of the northern Endicott Mountains were deposited in a basin that lay north of the Mount Doonerak high and later were thrust a short distance southward onto the northern flank of the high and are thus parautochthonous. To provide stratigraphic constraints for these models, this study examines Permian facies of the north central Brooks Range. Permian rocks in the north central Brooks Range comprise a thin (40 to 160 m thick), fining-upward succession of clastic, storm-influenced shelf deposits. When the rocks of the northern Endicott Mountains are restored south of the Mount Doonerak area, a minimum distance of 80 km, the Permian deposits grade systematically from distal facies (Siksikpuk Formation) in the southwest to proximal facies (Echooka Formation) in the northeast. Facies trends in the reconstructed Permian basin include, from southwest to northeast, (1) an increase in carbonate content and corresponding decrease in silica content, (2) a general darkening and thickening of shaley intervals, (3) an increase in proximal features of storm beds, including coarser, thicker, more abundant, and more closely spaced beds, and (4) an increase in abundance and diversity of the faunal assemblage with a corresponding decrease in age. These stratigraphic relations imply that rocks of the northern Endicott Mountains are allochthonous and structurally overlie a proximal stratigraphic succession similar to that exposed in the Mount Doonerak area and northeastern Brooks Range. Copyright 1997 by the American Geophysical Union.

75 FR 48415 - Labor Organization Officer and Employee Reports

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2010-08-10

...The Office of Labor-Management Standards of the Department of Labor (Department) is proposing to revise the Form LM-30 and its instructions. The Form LM-30 implements section 202 of the Labor- Management Reporting and Disclosure Act of 1959 (LMRDA or Act), 29 U.S.C. 432, the purpose of which is to require officers and employees of labor organizations to publicly disclose possible conflicts between their personal financial interests and their duty to the labor union and its members. The proposed rule would revise the Form LM-30 and its instructions, based on an examination of the policy and legal justifications for, and utility of, changes enacted in the Form LM-30 Final Rule (2007 rule), published on July 2, 2007. 72 FR 36105. Following promulgation of the 2007 rule, fundamental questions remain regarding the complexity of the form and its instructions, as well as the scope and extent of the LM-30 reporting obligations. These questions include the coverage of union stewards and others representing the union in similar positions; the reporting of certain loans and union leave and ``no docking'' payments; the reporting of payments from certain trusts, unions, and employers in competition with employers whose employees are represented by an official's union; and the reporting of certain interests held and payments received by higher level union officials. The Department proposes revisions to the 2007 form, its instructions, and the regulatory text concerning such reporting obligations. The Department invites general and specific comment on any aspect of this proposed rule.

Detecting causality in policy diffusion processes.

PubMed

Grabow, Carsten; Macinko, James; Silver, Diana; Porfiri, Maurizio

2016-08-01

A universal question in network science entails learning about the topology of interaction from collective dynamics. Here, we address this question by examining diffusion of laws across US states. We propose two complementary techniques to unravel determinants of this diffusion process: information-theoretic union transfer entropy and event synchronization. In order to systematically investigate their performance on law activity data, we establish a new stochastic model to generate synthetic law activity data based on plausible networks of interactions. Through extensive parametric studies, we demonstrate the ability of these methods to reconstruct networks, varying in size, link density, and degree heterogeneity. Our results suggest that union transfer entropy should be preferred for slowly varying processes, which may be associated with policies attending to specific local problems that occur only rarely or with policies facing high levels of opposition. In contrast, event synchronization is effective for faster enactment rates, which may be related to policies involving Federal mandates or incentives. This study puts forward a data-driven toolbox to explain the determinants of legal activity applicable to political science, across dynamical systems, information theory, and complex networks.

Migration of the population.

PubMed

Krasinets, E

1998-03-01

Two factors influence foreign migration balance of the Russian Federation. The first factor involves the migration process between Russia and former union republics. The influx of population to the Russian Federation from other republics of the former Soviet Union is considered as one of the largest in the world. The average annual migratory growth of Russia during the years 1991-94 as a result of this migration exchange has tripled as compared with 1986-90, with a total of 2.7 million Russians who migrated into Russia. However, from 1996 up to the present time, the number of persons arriving in Russia declined dramatically. Meanwhile, the second factor that determines the country's migration balance is emigration to the far abroad. The most significant trend in determining the development of internal migration in Russia is the outflow of population from northern and eastern regions. The directions of internal and external migratory flows have a large influence on the migration balance in Russia's rural areas. The reduction of migratory flows in rural areas is the direct result of processes in the economic sphere. It confirms the reconstruction of rural-urban migratory exchange.

Recurrent GCT of Distal Femur Treated with Resection Arthrodesis with Non-Vascularized Bilateral Fibular Graft and A Custom-Made Interlock Nail.

PubMed

Sanesh, Tuteja; Sachin, Kale; Prasad, Chaudhari; B, Dhar Sanjay

2016-01-01

Giant Cell Tumors commonly occur around the knee joint in the age group of 20-30 years. They are treated with intra-lesional curettage or local resection and limb reconstruction. Management of large bone defects after resection is a challenge and is of ten complicated with non-union of grafts, infection and delayed weight bearing. A 37-year-old male presented with an aggressive recurrent giant cell tumor of the distal femur. He was and was diagnosed with a GCT of the left distal femur 2 years ago for which he was treated with an intralesional curettage and Poly methylmetacrylate implantation. A resection arthrodesis using a bilateral non-vascularised intramedullary fibular graft and a custom made intramedullary nail was performed. The follow-up radiographs showed union at graft-host junction and hypertrophy of the grafted fibula at 2 years post surgery. Non-vascularised fibular graft is an effective alternative for resection arthrodesis with the advantages of a simpler and shorter surgical procedure and without the needs for a microsurgical setup.

Recurrent GCT of Distal Femur Treated with Resection Arthrodesis with Non-Vascularized Bilateral Fibular Graft and A Custom-Made Interlock Nail

PubMed Central

Sanesh, Tuteja; Sachin, Kale; Prasad, Chaudhari; Sanjay, B Dhar

2016-01-01

Introduction: Giant Cell Tumors commonly occur around the knee joint in the age group of 20-30 years. They are treated with intra-lesional curettage or local resection and limb reconstruction. Management of large bone defects after resection is a challenge and is of ten complicated with non-union of grafts, infection and delayed weight bearing. Case Presentation: A 37-year-old male presented with an aggressive recurrent giant cell tumor of the distal femur. He was and was diagnosed with a GCT of the left distal femur 2 years ago for which he was treated with an intralesional curettage and Poly methylmetacrylate implantation. A resection arthrodesis using a bilateral non-vascularised intramedullary fibular graft and a custom made intramedullary nail was performed. The follow-up radiographs showed union at graft-host junction and hypertrophy of the grafted fibula at 2 years post surgery. Conclusion: Non-vascularised fibular graft is an effective alternative for resection arthrodesis with the advantages of a simpler and shorter surgical procedure and without the needs for a microsurgical setup. PMID:28116258

Detecting causality in policy diffusion processes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Grabow, Carsten; Macinko, James; Silver, Diana; Porfiri, Maurizio

2016-08-01

A universal question in network science entails learning about the topology of interaction from collective dynamics. Here, we address this question by examining diffusion of laws across US states. We propose two complementary techniques to unravel determinants of this diffusion process: information-theoretic union transfer entropy and event synchronization. In order to systematically investigate their performance on law activity data, we establish a new stochastic model to generate synthetic law activity data based on plausible networks of interactions. Through extensive parametric studies, we demonstrate the ability of these methods to reconstruct networks, varying in size, link density, and degree heterogeneity. Our results suggest that union transfer entropy should be preferred for slowly varying processes, which may be associated with policies attending to specific local problems that occur only rarely or with policies facing high levels of opposition. In contrast, event synchronization is effective for faster enactment rates, which may be related to policies involving Federal mandates or incentives. This study puts forward a data-driven toolbox to explain the determinants of legal activity applicable to political science, across dynamical systems, information theory, and complex networks.

Geodynamic Models of Plume-Ridge Interaction in the Indian Ocean and its Effect on the Crustal Thickness of the Réunion Hotspot Track

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bredow, E.; Gassmöller, R.; Dannberg, J.; Steinberger, B.

2016-12-01

The Réunion mantle plume had a first impact on the Earth's surface when the plume head approached the base of the lithosphere around 67 million years ago and the first vigorous volcanic eruptions created the Deccan Traps in India, one of the largest flood basalt provinces in the world. During this period, the Indian plate may have been accelerated by the uprising plume head, leading to a northeastward plate motion with a unique velocity of up to 18 cm/year. The hotspot track, generally considered to be created by the plume tail impinging on the moving plates, comprises the volcanic chains of the Laccadives, Maldives and Chagos on the Indian plate and the Southern Mascarene Plateau on the African plate. It has been divided by seafloor spreading, since the Central Indian Ridge has passed over the plume approximately 50 million years ago, leading to intensive and continuing plume-ridge interaction. Considering the whole geodynamic history of the plume up to its currently active position underneath the island of Réunion, we set up three-dimensional regional convection models of the upper mantle using the mantle convection code ASPECT (Advanced Solver for Problems in Earth's ConvecTion). In order to study this specific plume, we prescribe the global flow field from a coarser global model at the side boundaries and bottom of the box model and the reconstructed tectonic plate velocities at the uppermost 200 km while a plume inflow is enforced at the bottom. Furthermore, we extended the code to import varying lithosphere thickness values at the side boundaries to compare realistic lithosphere models with simple constant lithosphere thickness models. Finally, we compare the amount and pattern of the resulting crustal thickness produced by the plume with present-day topographic maps to constrain plume properties such as the excess temperature and buoyancy flux. Special focus is placed on how the ridge geometry helps generating the distinctive gap in the hotspot track between Chagos and the Maldives and on the origin of the Rodriguez Ridge, a volcanic lineament between the plume and the Central Indian Ridge, which has been suggested to be a sub-lithosphere melt channel by Morgan already in 1978 and can be observed in our models.

Addition of a Medial Locking Plate to an In Situ Lateral Locking Plate Results in Healing of Distal Femoral Nonunions.

PubMed

Holzman, Michael A; Hanus, Bryan D; Munz, John W; O'Connor, Daniel P; Brinker, Mark R

2016-06-01

Nonunion of the distal femur after lateral plating is associated with axial malalignment, chronic pain, loss of ambulatory function, and decreased knee ROM. The addition of a medial locking plate with autogenous bone grafting can provide greater stability to allow bone healing and may be used to achieve union in these challenging cases. We wished to determine (1) the proportion of patients who achieve radiographic signs of osseous union for distal femoral nonunions with an in situ lateral plate after treatment with addition of a medial locking plate and autogenous bone grafting, and (2) the frequency and types of complications associated with this treatment. Between 2007 and 2013, we treated 22 patients for 23 distal femoral nonunions, defined as an unhealed fracture with no radiographic signs of osseous union at a mean of 16 months (SD, 13 months) after injury. During that time, we used a treatment algorithm consisting of treatment in one or two stages. The single-stage procedure performed in 16 aseptic nonunions with a stable lateral plate involved addition of a medial locking plate and autogenous bone graft. A two-stage treatment performed in seven nonunions with lateral plate failure involved placement of a new lateral locking plate followed by addition of a medial locking plate with autogenous bone graft at least 2 months after the first procedure. Of the 22 patients treated, 20 had a median followup of 18 months (SD, 6-94 months). We defined osseous union by bridging bone on three of four cortices with absence of a radiolucent line or more than 25% cross-sectional area of bridging bone via CT. Twenty of the 21 nonunions attained radiographic signs of osseous union by 12 months. Six of the 20 patients experienced complications: one patient had a persistent nonunion; four patients underwent removal of symptomatic hardware; and one patient experienced skin breakdown at the bone graft harvest site. A very high proportion of patients achieve union when using medial locking plates to treat distal femoral nonunions after lateral plating of the original injury. Addition of bone graft, staged reconstruction, and revision of the initial lateral plate is indicated when the nonunion is associated with fatigue failure of the initial lateral plate. Level IV, therapeutic study.

Solitary haemangioma of the shaft of long bones: resection and reconstruction with autologous bone graft.

PubMed

Li, Zhaoxu; Tang, Jicun; Ye, Zhaoming

2013-04-01

Bone haemangiomas are uncommon lesions, occurring in the skull or spine. A solitary haemangioma in the diaphysis of a long bone is rare. We retrospectively investigated six patients who presented with a solitary haemangioma in a long bone diaphysis. After segmental bone resection, the bone defect was replaced by a bone autograft. Patients were reviewed clinically and with radiographs. The mean follow-up was 6 years (range : 1-20 years). At the time of latest follow-up, no patient had a recurrence. Postoperative complications were one wound necrosis and one superficial wound infection. Union of the gap filling graft with the host bone was achieved in all patients at an average of 4 months (range: 3-8 months). The average Musculoskeletal Tumor Society functional score was 77% (range: 53%-90%) of normal at 6 months postoperatively, and 97% (range: 95%-99%) at the last follow-up evaluation. Segmental resection for solitary haemangioma and reconstruction with autologous bone graft can be considered as a suitable treatment option.

Reconstruction of the Midfoot Using a Free Vascularized Fibular Graft After En Bloc Excision for Giant Cell Tumor of the Tarsal Bones: A Case Report.

PubMed

Hara, Hitomi; Kawamoto, Teruya; Onishi, Yasuo; Fujioka, Hiroyuki; Nishida, Kotaro; Kuroda, Ryosuke; Kurosaka, Masahiro; Akisue, Toshihiro

2016-01-01

We report the case of a 32-year-old Japanese female with a giant cell tumor of bone involving multiple midfoot bones. Giant cell tumors of bone account for approximately 5% of all primary bone tumors and most often arise at the ends of long bones. The small bones, such as those of the hands and feet, are rare sites for giant cell tumors. Giant cell tumors of the small bones tend to exhibit more aggressive clinical behavior than those of the long bones. The present patient underwent en bloc tumor excision involving multiple tarsals and metatarsals. We reconstructed the longitudinal arch of the foot with a free vascularized fibular graft. At the 2-year follow-up visit, bony union had been achieved, with no tumor recurrence. Copyright © 2016 American College of Foot and Ankle Surgeons. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Assessment of the generalization of learned image reconstruction and the potential for transfer learning.

PubMed

Knoll, Florian; Hammernik, Kerstin; Kobler, Erich; Pock, Thomas; Recht, Michael P; Sodickson, Daniel K

2018-05-17

Although deep learning has shown great promise for MR image reconstruction, an open question regarding the success of this approach is the robustness in the case of deviations between training and test data. The goal of this study is to assess the influence of image contrast, SNR, and image content on the generalization of learned image reconstruction, and to demonstrate the potential for transfer learning. Reconstructions were trained from undersampled data using data sets with varying SNR, sampling pattern, image contrast, and synthetic data generated from a public image database. The performance of the trained reconstructions was evaluated on 10 in vivo patient knee MRI acquisitions from 2 different pulse sequences that were not used during training. Transfer learning was evaluated by fine-tuning baseline trainings from synthetic data with a small subset of in vivo MR training data. Deviations in SNR between training and testing led to substantial decreases in reconstruction image quality, whereas image contrast was less relevant. Trainings from heterogeneous training data generalized well toward the test data with a range of acquisition parameters. Trainings from synthetic, non-MR image data showed residual aliasing artifacts, which could be removed by transfer learning-inspired fine-tuning. This study presents insights into the generalization ability of learned image reconstruction with respect to deviations in the acquisition settings between training and testing. It also provides an outlook for the potential of transfer learning to fine-tune trainings to a particular target application using only a small number of training cases. © 2018 International Society for Magnetic Resonance in Medicine.

Reconstruction of Traumatic Bone Defect With In Situ Implantation of Dropped Traumatic Segmental Bone Fragments.

PubMed

Lin, Dasheng; Luo, Deqing; Lian, Kejian; Zhai, Wenliang; Ding, Zhenqi

2016-01-01

This study was conducted to determine whether in situ implantation of a dropped traumatic segmental bone fragment is safe and whether the authors' method would reduce the incidence of infectious and related complications. The authors retrospectively reviewed 16 patients with open fractures, including 11 with Gustilo-Anderson type IIIA fractures and 5 with Gustilo-Anderson type IIIB fractures who had a dropped traumatic segmental bone fragment between January 2002 and January 2012. Mean patient age was 35.4 years (range, 19-47 years). There were 10 femurs and 6 tibias. Average postoperative follow-up was 26.8 months (range, 12-60 months). The dropped traumatic segmental bone fragments were cleaned with 3% hydrogen peroxide, placed in separate sterile cups, and soaked in 1% iodophor for 30 minutes. Initial treatment included surgical debridement, wound irrigation, in situ implantation of the dropped traumatic segmental bone fragment, and temporary external fixation. Approximately 4 to 8 weeks later, after successful reconstruction of the soft tissue envelope, minimally invasive plate osteosynthesis was performed. Mean duration of treatment was 8 weeks (range, 6-14 weeks). All patients had fracture union at final follow-up. Mean healing time was 21.8 weeks (range, 14-48 weeks). One patient did not achieve primary union and required bone grafting. One patient with a Gustilo-Anderson type IIIB fracture had deep infection and removal of the dropped traumatic segmental bone fragment and bone grafting. According to the Klemm and Börner classification, 11 patients had excellent results, 3 had good results, and 2 had poor results. With adequate soft tissue coverage, this method was acceptable for the management of open fractures with bone defects. Copyright 2016, SLACK Incorporated.

Endodontic treatment of a fused tooth. Report of a case.

PubMed

Gallottini, L; Barbato Bellatini, R C; Migliau, G

2007-01-01

Dental fusion, a rare developmental anomaly present in 0.2% of the general population, consists of the union of two teeth originating from two different tooth germs. The irregular coronal morphology and the complex endodontic anatomy, characterized by the partial or total union of the pulp chambers, together with the peculiarity of the root canal systems, make diagnosis, therapy and rehabilitation difficult. The authors describe the endodontic treatment of a permanent lower second molar fused with a third molar and having four root canals.

United States Policy in India: Balancing Global and Regional Perspectives.

DTIC Science & Technology

1983-12-01

ability to contribute to the Soviet Union’s adoption of a prb-Indian position on the Kashmir dispute from Novembe;, 1955; ii| Moscow’s impact on India’s...policies of the current administration under President Reagan. The generally positive attitude. that the 4W Soviet Union has adopted towards Indian... impact of the actions on local opinion or they discounted it as unimportant in the global context. The United States did not become fully. involved in

A Chip in the Curtain: Computer Technology in the Soviet Union

DTIC Science & Technology

1989-03-01

authority of the tsar. British historian Lionel Kochan recounted some of the rather complicated story of religion and the tsars: The Church, because of... pseudosciences " and their study was forbidden. Stalin’s policy delayed the development of a scientific and academic foundation for the study of the computer in...leaders, the doctrine of Marx and Lenin is a matter of faith comparable to a religion in Western terms. When the General Secretary of the Soviet Union

Defense Implications of a Nuclear Iran for Turkey

DTIC Science & Technology

2007-12-01

firms including Atomic Energy of Canada, Kraftwerk Union of Germany, and General Electric of the United States. Negotiations with General Electric...ended prematurely since, according to the firm, a reactor in Sinop would not be feasible due to seismic threats in Black Sea. The German firm Kraftwerk

75 FR 57657 - Supplemental Standards of Ethical Conduct for Employees of the Special Inspector General for Iraq...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2010-09-22

... Ethical Conduct for Employees of the Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction AGENCY: Special... Iraq Reconstruction (SIGIR), with the concurrence of the Office of Government Ethics (OGE), is... of Ethical Conduct (Standards) issued by OGE. With certain exceptions, this supplemental regulation...

Which is the best method of sterilization for recycled bone autograft in limb salvage surgery: a radiological, biomechanical and histopathological study in rabbit.

PubMed

Yasin, Nor Faissal; Ajit Singh, Vivek; Saad, Marniza; Omar, Effat

2015-04-15

Limb salvage surgery is a treatment of choice for sarcomas of the extremities. One of the options in skeletal reconstruction after tumour resection is by using a recycled bone autograft. The present accepted methods of recycling bone autografts include autoclaving, pasteurization and irradiation. At the moment there is lack of studies that compare the effectiveness of various sterilization methods used for recycling bone autografts and their effects in terms of bone incorporation. This study was performed to determine the effects of different methods of sterilization on bone autografts in rabbit by radiological, biomechanical and histopathological evaluations. Fresh rabbit cortical bone is harvested from the tibial diaphysis and sterilized extracorporeally by pasteurization (n = 6), autoclaving (n = 6), irradiation (n = 6) and normal saline as control group (n = 6). The cortical bones were immediately reimplanted after the sterilization process. The subsequent process of graft incorporation was examined over a period of 12 weeks by serial radiographs, biomechanical and histopathological evaluations. Statistical analysis (ANOVA) was performed on these results. Significance level (α) and power (β) were set to 0.05 and 0.90, respectively. Radiographic analysis showed that irradiation group has higher score in bony union compared to other sterilization groups (p = 0.041). ANOVA analysis of 'failure stress', 'modulus' and 'strain to failure' demonstrated no significant differences (p = 0.389) between treated and untreated specimens under mechanical loading. In macroscopic histopathological analysis, the irradiated group has the highest percentage of bony union (91.7 percent). However in microscopic analysis of union, the pasteurization group has significantly higher score (p = 0.041) in callus formation, osteocytes percentage and bone marrow cellularity at the end of the study indicating good union potential. This experimental study shown that both irradiation and pasteurization techniques have more favourable outcome in terms of bony union based on radiographic and histopathological evaluations. Autoclaving has the worst outcome. These results indicate that extracorporeal irradiation or pasteurization of bone autografts, are viable option for recycling bone autografts. However, pasteurization has the best overall outcomes because of its osteocytes preservation and bone marrow cellularity.

Intercalary frozen autograft for reconstruction of malignant bone and soft tissue tumours.

PubMed

Zekry, Karem M; Yamamoto, Norio; Hayashi, Katsuhiro; Takeuchi, Akihiko; Higuchi, Takashi; Abe, Kensaku; Taniguchi, Yuta; Alkhooly, Ali Zein A A; Abd-Elfattah, Ahmed Saleh; Fouly, Ezzat H; Ahmed, Adel Refaat; Tsuchiya, Hiroyuki

2017-07-01

In 1999, we developed a technique using frozen autografts-tumour-containing bone treated with liquid nitrogen-for the reconstruction of malignant bone tumours. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the functional and oncological outcomes of frozen autografts for intercalary reconstruction of malignant bones and soft tissue tumours. This retrospective study was designed to assess 34 patients of mean age 35 (range, 6-79) years. The mean follow-up period was 62 (24-214) months. The median length of the frozen autografts was 138.4 ± 60.39 (50-290) mm. Postsurgically, 20 patients remained disease-free, seven patients survived with no evidence of disease, five patients were alive with disease, and two patients died of disease. The five- and ten-year survival rates of the frozen autografts were 91.2% and the mean International Society of Limb Salvage score was 90%. Complete bony union was achieved in 97% of the patients. There were five cases of nonunion, six cases of fracture, two cases of deep infection and four cases of local recurrence. Utilizing intercalary frozen autografts for patients with a nonosteolytic primary or secondary bone tumour without involvement of the subchondral bone is a good alternative treatment, because it is a straightforward biological technique and can provide excellent limb function.

Reconstruction of the elbow and forearm for Ewing sarcoma of ulna: A new biological technique

PubMed Central

Puri, Ajay; Gulia, Ashish; Byregowda, Suman; Ramanujan, Vishnu

2016-01-01

Primary bone tumors around the elbow represent <1% of all the skeletal tumors. Surgery with or without adjuvant therapy (radiotherapy, chemotherapy) is the treatment of choice for malignant tumors. Reconstruction of the elbow and forearm in malignant tumors is challenging as it involves a complex interplay between multiple joints which need to be stabilized for the optimal functional outcome. We describe a new technique for the reconstruction of the elbow after resection of a proximal ulna tumor with articular radio-ulnar synostosis with the creation of a single bone forearm. We attempted to achieve a mobile elbow and stable wrist joint with the radio-ulnar union at the proximal articular surface of the ulna resulting in a single bone forearm. The procedure involves an oblique osteotomy preserving the olecranon process (after taking adequate margins based on oncological principles) and its articular cartilage along with the attachment of the triceps tendon. Then the radial head was partially denuded of its cartilage using a burr, leaving cartilage only on the volar side, and then fused to the remnant olecranon. Osteosynthesis was done using compression screw and tension band wiring. The advantages of this procedure are that the mobility at wrist and elbow are retained, it requires minimal hardware and allows for primary closure of the wound. PMID:27186061

SU-D-206-03: Segmentation Assisted Fast Iterative Reconstruction Method for Cone-Beam CT

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

Wu, P; Mao, T; Gong, S

2016-06-15

Purpose: Total Variation (TV) based iterative reconstruction (IR) methods enable accurate CT image reconstruction from low-dose measurements with sparse projection acquisition, due to the sparsifiable feature of most CT images using gradient operator. However, conventional solutions require large amount of iterations to generate a decent reconstructed image. One major reason is that the expected piecewise constant property is not taken into consideration at the optimization starting point. In this work, we propose an iterative reconstruction method for cone-beam CT (CBCT) using image segmentation to guide the optimization path more efficiently on the regularization term at the beginning of the optimizationmore » trajectory. Methods: Our method applies general knowledge that one tissue component in the CT image contains relatively uniform distribution of CT number. This general knowledge is incorporated into the proposed reconstruction using image segmentation technique to generate the piecewise constant template on the first-pass low-quality CT image reconstructed using analytical algorithm. The template image is applied as an initial value into the optimization process. Results: The proposed method is evaluated on the Shepp-Logan phantom of low and high noise levels, and a head patient. The number of iterations is reduced by overall 40%. Moreover, our proposed method tends to generate a smoother reconstructed image with the same TV value. Conclusion: We propose a computationally efficient iterative reconstruction method for CBCT imaging. Our method achieves a better optimization trajectory and a faster convergence behavior. It does not rely on prior information and can be readily incorporated into existing iterative reconstruction framework. Our method is thus practical and attractive as a general solution to CBCT iterative reconstruction. This work is supported by the Zhejiang Provincial Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. LR16F010001), National High-tech R&D Program for Young Scientists by the Ministry of Science and Technology of China (Grant No. 2015AA020917).« less

7 CFR 97.5 - General requirements.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-01-01

... in the files of the Plant Variety Protection Office. Applicants may learn whether such a request will... PLANT VARIETY AND PROTECTION The Application § 97.5 General requirements. (a) Protection under the Act... International Union for the Protection of New Varieties of Plants (including states which are members of an...

WHY TEACH PHYSICS.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

BROWN, SANBORN C.; AND OTHERS

THIS BOOK CONTAINS A SURVEY OF THE PROCEEDINGS OF THE CONFERENCE ON PHYSICS IN GENERAL EDUCATION, HELD IN RIO DE JANEIRO IN JULY 1963. THIS WAS THE SECOND CONFERENCE OF THE INTERNATIONAL UNION OF PURE AND APPLIED PHYSICS. CONFERENCE ADDRESSES, CONSTITUTING THE MAJOR PORTION OF THE TEXT, CONSIDER THE TEACHING OF SECONDARY SCHOOL GENERAL EDUCATION…

Union perceptions of factors related to the return to work of employees with depression.

PubMed

Corbière, Marc; Renard, Marianne; St-Arnaud, Louise; Coutu, Marie-France; Negrini, Alessia; Sauvé, Geneviève; Lecomte, Tania

2015-06-01

Between 30 and 60% of the societal cost of depression is due to losses related to decreased work productivity. To date, only a few studies have focused on union perspectives related to factors influencing the return-to-work of employees absent due to depression, despite evidence of the importance of these perspectives. The purpose of this study is to develop a better understanding of union perspectives on the factors surrounding the return-to-work of employees who were absent from work due to depression. In this qualitative study, conducted in Canada (Québec), 23 individuals (union representatives and peer workers) from the three largest unions (mixed industries) in Quebec took part in one of three focus groups. Fourteen emerging themes (e.g., work environment, attitudes toward depression) were distributed over five categories of stakeholders involved in the return-to-work of employees on sick leave (i.e., employers and immediate supervisors, co-workers, employees on sick leave due to depression, general physicians, and unions). We observed four major cross-cutting themes that arose beyond these five categories: (1) organizational culture in which mental health issues and human aspects of work are central, (2) support and follow-up during the work absence and the return-to-work, (3) lack of resources to assist the employee in the return-to-work, and (4) stakeholders' prejudices and discomfort regarding depression. Our results clarify the factors, from a union perspective, that may facilitate or hinder the return-to-work of employees absent from work due to depression.

Whole-body PET parametric imaging employing direct 4D nested reconstruction and a generalized non-linear Patlak model

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Karakatsanis, Nicolas A.; Rahmim, Arman

2014-03-01

Graphical analysis is employed in the research setting to provide quantitative estimation of PET tracer kinetics from dynamic images at a single bed. Recently, we proposed a multi-bed dynamic acquisition framework enabling clinically feasible whole-body parametric PET imaging by employing post-reconstruction parameter estimation. In addition, by incorporating linear Patlak modeling within the system matrix, we enabled direct 4D reconstruction in order to effectively circumvent noise amplification in dynamic whole-body imaging. However, direct 4D Patlak reconstruction exhibits a relatively slow convergence due to the presence of non-sparse spatial correlations in temporal kinetic analysis. In addition, the standard Patlak model does not account for reversible uptake, thus underestimating the influx rate Ki. We have developed a novel whole-body PET parametric reconstruction framework in the STIR platform, a widely employed open-source reconstruction toolkit, a) enabling accelerated convergence of direct 4D multi-bed reconstruction, by employing a nested algorithm to decouple the temporal parameter estimation from the spatial image update process, and b) enhancing the quantitative performance particularly in regions with reversible uptake, by pursuing a non-linear generalized Patlak 4D nested reconstruction algorithm. A set of published kinetic parameters and the XCAT phantom were employed for the simulation of dynamic multi-bed acquisitions. Quantitative analysis on the Ki images demonstrated considerable acceleration in the convergence of the nested 4D whole-body Patlak algorithm. In addition, our simulated and patient whole-body data in the postreconstruction domain indicated the quantitative benefits of our extended generalized Patlak 4D nested reconstruction for tumor diagnosis and treatment response monitoring.

GENFIRE: A generalized Fourier iterative reconstruction algorithm for high-resolution 3D imaging

DOE PAGES

Pryor, Alan; Yang, Yongsoo; Rana, Arjun; ...

2017-09-05

Tomography has made a radical impact on diverse fields ranging from the study of 3D atomic arrangements in matter to the study of human health in medicine. Despite its very diverse applications, the core of tomography remains the same, that is, a mathematical method must be implemented to reconstruct the 3D structure of an object from a number of 2D projections. Here, we present the mathematical implementation of a tomographic algorithm, termed GENeralized Fourier Iterative REconstruction (GENFIRE), for high-resolution 3D reconstruction from a limited number of 2D projections. GENFIRE first assembles a 3D Fourier grid with oversampling and then iteratesmore » between real and reciprocal space to search for a global solution that is concurrently consistent with the measured data and general physical constraints. The algorithm requires minimal human intervention and also incorporates angular refinement to reduce the tilt angle error. We demonstrate that GENFIRE can produce superior results relative to several other popular tomographic reconstruction techniques through numerical simulations and by experimentally reconstructing the 3D structure of a porous material and a frozen-hydrated marine cyanobacterium. As a result, equipped with a graphical user interface, GENFIRE is freely available from our website and is expected to find broad applications across different disciplines.« less

GENFIRE: A generalized Fourier iterative reconstruction algorithm for high-resolution 3D imaging

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

Pryor, Alan; Yang, Yongsoo; Rana, Arjun

Tomography has made a radical impact on diverse fields ranging from the study of 3D atomic arrangements in matter to the study of human health in medicine. Despite its very diverse applications, the core of tomography remains the same, that is, a mathematical method must be implemented to reconstruct the 3D structure of an object from a number of 2D projections. Here, we present the mathematical implementation of a tomographic algorithm, termed GENeralized Fourier Iterative REconstruction (GENFIRE), for high-resolution 3D reconstruction from a limited number of 2D projections. GENFIRE first assembles a 3D Fourier grid with oversampling and then iteratesmore » between real and reciprocal space to search for a global solution that is concurrently consistent with the measured data and general physical constraints. The algorithm requires minimal human intervention and also incorporates angular refinement to reduce the tilt angle error. We demonstrate that GENFIRE can produce superior results relative to several other popular tomographic reconstruction techniques through numerical simulations and by experimentally reconstructing the 3D structure of a porous material and a frozen-hydrated marine cyanobacterium. As a result, equipped with a graphical user interface, GENFIRE is freely available from our website and is expected to find broad applications across different disciplines.« less

MIGRESIVES: a research project on migration from adhesives in food-packaging materials in support of European legislation and standardization.

PubMed

Störmer, A; Franz, R

2009-12-01

Most food packages and food-contact materials are manufactured using adhesives. The European Union regulates all food-contact materials, as their constituents may not contaminate food and endanger consumers' health. In contrast to plastics which are regulated by positive lists of authorized ingredients, adhesives have not yet a specific regulation. The MIGRESIVES project aimed to elaborate a scientific global risk-assessment approach to meet current general European Union regulatory requirements and as a basis for future specific European Union legislation as well as to provide the industry, especially small and medium-sized enterprises, a tool to ensure that migration from adhesives is in compliance with the regulatory requirements. The idea was to demonstrate that consumers' exposure to chemicals released by adhesives is in many cases below levels of concern. Technical/scientific knowledge from industry and research institutes will be merged into a collective research endeavour gathering all stakeholders. The major milestones are (1) the classification of adhesives according to chemistry and uses, (2) the test strategies based on physico-chemical behaviour of adhesives, (3) modelling migration/exposure from adhesives, (4) providing guidelines to integrate the risk-assessment approach into the daily life of companies, (5) the feasibility of applying the toxicological approach from the European Union BIOSAFEPAPER project, and (6) extensive training/education to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and large dissemination for general adoption of the concept in Europe.

Accurate low-dose iterative CT reconstruction from few projections by Generalized Anisotropic Total Variation minimization for industrial CT.

PubMed

Debatin, Maurice; Hesser, Jürgen

2015-01-01

Reducing the amount of time for data acquisition and reconstruction in industrial CT decreases the operation time of the X-ray machine and therefore increases the sales. This can be achieved by reducing both, the dose and the pulse length of the CT system and the number of projections for the reconstruction, respectively. In this paper, a novel generalized Anisotropic Total Variation regularization for under-sampled, low-dose iterative CT reconstruction is discussed and compared to the standard methods, Total Variation, Adaptive weighted Total Variation and Filtered Backprojection. The novel regularization function uses a priori information about the Gradient Magnitude Distribution of the scanned object for the reconstruction. We provide a general parameterization scheme and evaluate the efficiency of our new algorithm for different noise levels and different number of projection views. When noise is not present, error-free reconstructions are achievable for AwTV and GATV from 40 projections. In cases where noise is simulated, our strategy achieves a Relative Root Mean Square Error that is up to 11 times lower than Total Variation-based and up to 4 times lower than AwTV-based iterative statistical reconstruction (e.g. for a SNR of 223 and 40 projections). To obtain the same reconstruction quality as achieved by Total Variation, the projection number and the pulse length, and the acquisition time and the dose respectively can be reduced by a factor of approximately 3.5, when AwTV is used and a factor of approximately 6.7, when our proposed algorithm is used.

[Primary functional reconstruction of the floor of the mouth following surgery for cancer (author's transl)].

PubMed

Arnold, W; Vosteen, K H

1979-08-01

The authors tell of their experience with the reconstruction of the floor of the mouth following surgery for cancer. They feel that especially in older patients with bad general condition the simplest surgical methods of reconstruction are the best.

Land of the free, home of the (un)regulated: A look at market-building and liberalization in the EU and the US

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hoffmann, Leif Soren Birger Per Ove Holm

In my dissertation I argue that because the European Union and the United States of America have been largely treated as unique or at least special cases, both the literature on American-state building and that on European market integration have missed how close comparison alters both our descriptive views and social-scientific explanations of the shape of each polity. In particular, scholars have not sufficiently recognized that the European Union has gone further than the United States in many elements of the creation of a centralized, liberalized single market, nor have they produced explanations that account well for this development. This study challenges the dominant assumption that the United States is generally more hierarchical and centralized than the European Union and more of a single free market in the sense of fewer allowable trade barriers. By analyzing the rules of market integration in services (over 70% of GDP), public procurement (15 -- 20% GDP) and the regulated goods markets (goods like elevators with their own regulatory regimes), I demonstrate that in all these major cases the European Union has adopted rules that open exchange to competition more than the United States. While the actual integration of flows on the ground is still generally less across European states than American ones, the political rules are more - and more liberally - integrated in Europe. I offer an institutional and ideational argument to explain these differences, with two main parts. First, there is no American parallel to the institution of the European Commission, which is mandated to continually push liberalization forward. My research shows that Commission leadership has been critical to each of the examined cases. Second, broader norms of legitimate governance favor centralized authority - including liberalizing central authority - more in the European Union than in the United States. Despite all the criticism we hear of the European Union, the basic notion of federal governance of market integration is far more strongly accepted across Europe at both elite and mass levels than in the United States. As interview evidence in this study displays, many Americans consistently object to any role for the federal government.

Interleaved EPI diffusion imaging using SPIRiT-based reconstruction with virtual coil compression.

PubMed

Dong, Zijing; Wang, Fuyixue; Ma, Xiaodong; Zhang, Zhe; Dai, Erpeng; Yuan, Chun; Guo, Hua

2018-03-01

To develop a novel diffusion imaging reconstruction framework based on iterative self-consistent parallel imaging reconstruction (SPIRiT) for multishot interleaved echo planar imaging (iEPI), with computation acceleration by virtual coil compression. As a general approach for autocalibrating parallel imaging, SPIRiT improves the performance of traditional generalized autocalibrating partially parallel acquisitions (GRAPPA) methods in that the formulation with self-consistency is better conditioned, suggesting SPIRiT to be a better candidate in k-space-based reconstruction. In this study, a general SPIRiT framework is adopted to incorporate both coil sensitivity and phase variation information as virtual coils and then is applied to 2D navigated iEPI diffusion imaging. To reduce the reconstruction time when using a large number of coils and shots, a novel shot-coil compression method is proposed for computation acceleration in Cartesian sampling. Simulations and in vivo experiments were conducted to evaluate the performance of the proposed method. Compared with the conventional coil compression, the shot-coil compression achieved higher compression rates with reduced errors. The simulation and in vivo experiments demonstrate that the SPIRiT-based reconstruction outperformed the existing method, realigned GRAPPA, and provided superior images with reduced artifacts. The SPIRiT-based reconstruction with virtual coil compression is a reliable method for high-resolution iEPI diffusion imaging. Magn Reson Med 79:1525-1531, 2018. © 2017 International Society for Magnetic Resonance in Medicine. © 2017 International Society for Magnetic Resonance in Medicine.

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Nominations for officers 1982-1984

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Members of AGU are invited to submit additional nominees by petition in accordance with the bylaws. Each petition must be signed by at least 1% of the voting members of the Union or section, as the case may be, and such petitions must be received by the General Secretary by November 30, 1981. The number of names required to make a petition nomination is as follows: Union, 131; Geodesy, 6; Geomagnetism and Paleomagnetism, 7; Hydrology, 23; Meteorology, 10; Oceanography, 16; Planetology, 6; Seismology, 13; Solar-Planetary Relationships, 15; Tectonophysics, 11; and Volcanology, Geochemistry, and Petrology, 12.

Nominations for AGU officers 1990-1992

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

The nominees listed below are those of the Union and section nominating committees and have been approved by the AGU Council.Nominations may also be made by petition. There are no age, nationality, residence or other analogous restrictions on who may serve. As prescribed in the bylaws, each petition must be signed by at least 1% of the members of the Union or Section, as the case may be. Petitions should be sent to the General Secretary, AGU, 2000 Florida Avenue N.W., Washington, DC 20009. They must be received no later than July 7, 1989.

Vening Meinesz—A student of the Earth

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Vlaar, Nicolaas J.

The 1987 General Assembly of the International Union of Geodesy and Geophysics, Vancouver, Union Symposium Ul , “Quo Vadimus,” commemorated the 100th birthday of the Dutch geodesist and geophysicist Felix Andries Vening Meinesz.Vening Meinesz (1887-1966) (Figure 1) was born in a patrician family. His father was mayor of Rotterdam and later of Amsterdam. His mother descended from Dutch aristocracy. With such a background, a profession in science was not the most obvious ambition for a young man. Instead, a magistrate's career would have been more customary.

Chemistry experience in the primary heat transport circuits of Kraftwerk Union pressurized water reactors

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

Riess, R.

Chosen for this description of the selected Kraftwerk Union (KWU) pressurized water reactor units were Obrigheim (KWO, 345 MW(e)), Stade (KKS, 662 (MW(e)), Borselle (KCB, 477 MW(e)), and Biblis (KWB-A, 1204 MW(e)). The experience at these plants shows that with a special startup procedure and a proper chemical control of the primary heat transport system that influences general corrosion, selective types of corrosion, corrosion product activity transport and resulting contamination, and radiation-induced decomposition, KWU units have no basic problems.

On the importance of considering heterogeneity in witnesses' competence levels when reconstructing crimes from multiple witness testimonies.

PubMed

Waubert de Puiseau, Berenike; Greving, Sven; Aßfalg, André; Musch, Jochen

2017-09-01

Aggregating information across multiple testimonies may improve crime reconstructions. However, different aggregation methods are available, and research on which method is best suited for aggregating multiple observations is lacking. Furthermore, little is known about how variance in the accuracy of individual testimonies impacts the performance of competing aggregation procedures. We investigated the superiority of aggregation-based crime reconstructions involving multiple individual testimonies and whether this superiority varied as a function of the number of witnesses and the degree of heterogeneity in witnesses' ability to accurately report their observations. Moreover, we examined whether heterogeneity in competence levels differentially affected the relative accuracy of two aggregation procedures: a simple majority rule, which ignores individual differences, and the more complex general Condorcet model (Romney et al., Am Anthropol 88(2):313-338, 1986; Batchelder and Romney, Psychometrika 53(1):71-92, 1988), which takes into account differences in competence between individuals. 121 participants viewed a simulated crime and subsequently answered 128 true/false questions about the crime. We experimentally generated groups of witnesses with homogeneous or heterogeneous competences. Both the majority rule and the general Condorcet model provided more accurate reconstructions of the observed crime than individual testimonies. The superiority of aggregated crime reconstructions involving multiple individual testimonies increased with an increasing number of witnesses. Crime reconstructions were most accurate when competences were heterogeneous and aggregation was based on the general Condorcet model. We argue that a formal aggregation should be considered more often when eyewitness testimonies have to be assessed and that the general Condorcet model provides a good framework for such aggregations.

The Basic Principles and Methods of the Music Curriculum for the General Education School.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kabalevskii, Dmitrii

1988-01-01

Delineates the foundations of Dmitri Kabalevskii's music curriculum for general education in the Soviet Union. Stresses teaching music as part of life itself. Bases teaching principles and methods on the song, dance, and march, termed "The Three Whales." Offers extensive lesson plans focusing on first grade music activities. (CH)

Reconstruction of the History of the Photoelectric Effect and Its Implications for General Physics Textbooks

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Niaz, Mansoor; Klassen, Stephen; McMillan, Barbara; Metz, Don

2010-01-01

The photoelectric effect is an important part of general physics textbooks. To study the presentation of this phenomenon, we have reconstructed six essential, history and philosophy of science (HPS)-related aspects of the events that culminated in Einstein proposing his hypothesis of lightquanta and the ensuing controversy within the scientific…

Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction Quarterly Report to the United States Congress

DTIC Science & Technology

2008-10-30

RECONSTRUCTION INITIATIVES AFGHANISTAN RECONSTRUCTION INITIATIVES Framework for Current U.S. Funding Current U.S. support to Afghanistan...reconstruction is based on the Foreign Assistance Framework as set forth in the Department of State’s most recent Congressional Budget Justi cation for 2008 and...Humanitarian Assistance • The Framework supports the goal of aiding in the development of “democratic, well-governed states that respond to the

The ongoing emergence of robotics in plastic and reconstructive surgery.

PubMed

Struk, S; Qassemyar, Q; Leymarie, N; Honart, J-F; Alkhashnam, H; De Fremicourt, K; Conversano, A; Schaff, J-B; Rimareix, F; Kolb, F; Sarfati, B

2018-04-01

Robot-assisted surgery is more and more widely used in urology, general surgery and gynecological surgery. The interest of robotics in plastic and reconstructive surgery, a discipline that operates primarily on surfaces, has yet to be conclusively proved. However, the initial applications of robotic surgery in plastic and reconstructive surgery have been emerging in a number of fields including transoral reconstruction of posterior oropharyngeal defects, nipple-sparing mastectomy with immediate breast reconstruction, microsurgery, muscle harvesting for pelvic reconstruction and coverage of the scalp or the extremities. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.

European Union research in support of environment and health: Building scientific evidence base for policy.

PubMed

Karjalainen, Tuomo; Hoeveler, Arnd; Draghia-Akli, Ruxandra

2017-06-01

Opinion polls show that the European Union citizens are increasingly concerned about the impact of environmental factors on their health. In order to respond and provide solid scientific evidence for the numerous policies related to the protection of human health and the environment managed at the Union level, the European Union made a substantial investment in research and innovation in the past two decades through its Framework Programmes for Research and Technological Development, including the current programme, Horizon 2020, which started in 2014. This policy review paper analysed the portfolio of forty collaborative projects relevant to environment and health, which received a total amount of around 228 million euros from the EU. It gives details on their contents and general scientific trends observed, the profiles of the participating countries and institutions, and the potential policy implications of the results obtained. The increasing knowledge base is needed to make informed policy decisions in Europe and beyond, and should be useful to many stakeholders including the scientific community and regulatory authorities. Copyright © 2017. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

Reser­voir anisotropy and facies stratigraphic framework in the Pale­ocene Fort Union Formation, western Wind River basin

USGS Publications Warehouse

Flores, R.M.; Keighin, C.W.

1993-01-01

Investigation of reservoir anisotropy and lithofacies stratigraphic framework in the Fort Union Formation in western Wind River Basin, Wyoming focused on excellent surface exposures in the Shotgun Butte, Eagle Point, and Shotgun Bench synclines, and in the Merriam anticline area of the Wind River Reservation (Fig. 1). A complementary study was made of the formation in the Muddy Ridge and Pavillion gas fields, 8-10 mi to the southeast (Fig. 2). The Fort Union Formation is as much as 4000 ft thick in these areas, but thins to approximately 1800 ft toward the northern flank of the Little Dome anticline 3 mi south of Merriam anticline (Keefer and Troyer, 1964). The Fort Union Formation includes interbedded conglomerates, sandstones, siltstones, mudstones, coals, and carbonaceous shales (Fig. 3). The lower member of the Fort Union Formation is dominated by conglomerates and sandstones. The overlying Shotgun Member of the Fort Union Formation mainly consists of siltstones, mudstones, and carbonaceous shales, and coals, and subordinate sandstones. Contact between the lower member and Shotgun Member is gradational and marked by a topographic change from the resistant conglomerates and sandstones of the lower member to less resistant fine-grained strata of the Shotgun Member. In addition, the Shotgun Member commonly contains coal and carbonaceous shale beds, both in the surface and subsurface (Fig. 4). About 15-20 mi east of the study area the Waltman Shale Member of the Fort Union Formation pinches out at the contact between the lower member and Shotgun Member (Keefer and Johnson, this volume). The Waltman Shale Member, which consists of brown to gray silty and shaly claystones interbedded with sandstones, increases in thickness to as much as 3000 ft eastward into the basin center (Keefer, 1961; 1965). Thus, eastward, the Paleocene Fort Union Formation in ascending order, contains the lower member, Waltman Shale Member, and Shotgun Member. The Shotgun Member generally thins and interfingers with the Waltman Member.

Latissimus dorsi myocutaneous reconstruction: a study of long-term outcomes in a district general hospital.

PubMed

Kallaway, C; Humphreys, A; Laurence, N; Sutton, R

2016-11-01

INTRODUCTION The aim of this study was to evaluate the long-term outcome and durability of both autologous and implant-assisted latissimus dorsi reconstruction in a district general hospital over a 10-year follow-up period. METHODS A prospective cohort study was carried out using a detailed database of all latissimus dorsi flap reconstructions performed by a single consultant surgeon between 2003 and 2013 at the Royal United Hospital, Bath. The long-term outcome following reconstruction was assessed by analysing all episodes of 'reconstruction-specific' operations required from 6 months after the initial surgery. RESULTS The study included 110 patients with latissimus dorsi flap reconstructions, 21 autologous and 95 implant-assisted. Radiotherapy was given to 27 patients with reconstructed flaps. Mean follow-up was 69 months. Further reconstruction-specific surgery was needed in 27 (23%) cases, with 5 of these being post-radiotherapy flaps. Implant-related surgery was the most common reason for further surgery. Complications of the implant itself made up 52% of these cases, chronic sepsis being the most common. The rate of symptomatic capsular contracture requiring further surgery was 4.2%. Of these, one of four patients had undergone radiotherapy. DISCUSSION In our institution, latissimus dorsi reconstruction is durable and safe over the long term, with limited need for further substantial intervention to maintain a good outcome from the initial reconstruction. Autologous flaps were less likely to require further surgery over the long term compared with implant-based reconstructions. The low rate of symptomatic capsular contracture may be due to the protective mechanism provided by the extended harvest flap used.

Three-stage treatment protocol for recalcitrant distal femoral nonunion.

PubMed

Ma, Ching-Hou; Chiu, Yen-Chun; Tu, Yuan-Kun; Yen, Cheng-Yo; Wu, Chin-Hsien

2017-04-01

In this study, we proposed a three-stage treatment protocol for recalcitrant distal femoral nonunion and aimed to analyze the clinical results. We retrospective reviewed 12 consecutive patients with recalcitrant distal femoral nonunion undergoing our three-stage treatment protocol from January 2010 to December 2014 in our institute. The three-stage treatment protocol comprised debridement of the nonunion site, lengthening to eliminate leg length discrepancy, deformity correction, stabilization with a locked plate, filling of the defect with cement spacer for inducing membrane formation, and bone reconstruction using a cancellous bone autograft (Masquelet technique) or free vascularized fibular bone graft. The bone union time, wound complication, lower limbs alignment, amount of lengthening, knee range of motion, and functional outcomes were evaluated. Osseous union with angular deformity <5° and leg length discrepancy <1 cm were achieved in all the patients. The average amount of lengthening was 5.88 cm (range 3.5-12 cm). Excellent or good outcomes were obtained in 9 patients. Although the current study involved only a small number of patients and the intervention comprised three stages, we believe that such a protocol may be a valuable alternative for the treatment of recalcitrant distal femoral nonunion.

SIGAR Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction

DTIC Science & Technology

2017-04-30

supported Ministry of Agriculture program. (USAID photo) 4 REPRIORITIZING AFGHANISTAN SPECIAL INSPECTOR GENERAL I AFGHANISTAN RECONSTRUCTION The new...suppliers of agricultural products from Kabul, Kandahar, and Herat. (USAID photo) 7 REPRIORITIZING AFGHANISTAN REPORT TO THE UNITED STATES CONGRESS I...that was part of an agency effort to rebuild Afghan agricultural markets. That 2006 audit found that the contractor had not completed all its tasks

Seychelles alkaline suite records the culmination of Deccan Traps continental flood volcanism

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Owen-Smith, T. M.; Ashwal, L. D.; Torsvik, T. H.; Ganerød, M.; Nebel, O.; Webb, S. J.; Werner, S. C.

2013-12-01

Silhouette and North Islands in the Seychelles represent an alkaline plutonic-volcanic complex, dated at 63 to 63.5 Ma by U-Pb zircon and 40Ar/39Ar methods. This magmatism coincides with the final stages of the cataclysmic Deccan Traps continental flood volcanism in India (67 to 63 Ma), and thus a causal link has been suggested. Recent reconstructions have placed the Seychelles islands adjacent to the Laxmi Ridge and at the western margin of the Réunion mantle plume at the time of formation of the complex. Here we present geochemical evidence in support of the notion that the Seychelles alkaline magmatism was initiated by the peripheral activity of the Réunion mantle plume and is thus part of the Deccan magmatic event. Positive εNd (0.59 to 3.76) and εHf (0.82 to 6.79) and initial Sr of 0.703507 to 0.705643 at 65 Ma indicate derivation of the Seychelles alkaline magmas from a Réunion-like mantle source with an additional minor enriched component, suggesting entrainment of sub-continental lithospheric mantle. The similarity in trace element composition between the Seychelles suite and Deccan alkaline felsic and mafic rocks provides additional evidence for a common mantle source for the Seychelles and Deccan magmatism. Furthermore, we demonstrate the role of fractional crystallisation in the evolution of the alkaline suite. Modelling using major elements suggests that fractional crystallisation and varying degrees of accumulation of olivine, plagioclase, ilmenite, clinopyroxene, alkali feldspar and apatite can describe the spectrum of rock types, from gabbro, through syenite, to granite.

Latin American astronomers and the International Astronomical Union

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Torres-Peimbert, S.

2017-07-01

Selected aspects of the participation of the Latin American astronomers in the International Astronomical Union are presented: Membership, Governing bodies, IAU meetings, and other activities. The Union was founded in 1919 with 7 initial member states, soon to be followed by Brazil. In 1921 Mexico joined, and in 1928 Argentina also formed part of the Union, while Chile joined in 1947. In 1961 Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Mexico and Venezuela were already member countries. At present (October 2016) 72 countries contribute financially to the Union. The Union lists 12,391 professional astronomers as individual members; of those, 692 astronomers work in Latin America and the Caribbean, from 13 member states (Argentina, Bolivia , Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Honduras, Mexico, Panamá, Perú, Uruguay and Venezuela) as well as from Ecuador and Puerto Rico. This group comprises 5.58% of the total membership, a figure somewhat lower than the fraction of the population in the region, which is 8.6% of the world population. Of the Latin American members, 23.4% are women and 76.6% are men; slightly higher than the whole membership of Union, which is of 16.9%. In the governing bodies it can be mentioned that there have been 2 Presidents of the Union (Jorge Sahade and Silvia Torres-Peimbert), 7 VicePresidents (Guillermo Haro, Jorge Sahade, Manuel Peimbert Claudio Anguita, Silvia Torres-Peimbert, Beatriz Barbuy, and Marta G. Rovira). The IAU meetings held in the region, include 2 General Assemblies (the 1991 XXI GA took place in Buenos Aires, Argentina and the 2009 XXVIII GA, in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil), 15 Regional Meetings (in Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Mexico, Venezuela and Uruguay), 29 Symposia (in Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Peru and Mexico), 5 Colloquia (in Argentina and Mexico), 8 International Schools for Young Astronomers (in Argentina, Brazil, Cuba, Honduras and Mexico), and 11 projects sponsored by the Office of Astronomy for Development. In conclusion, the engagement of the Latin American astronomers with the Union has been fruitful and significant.

Region of Interest Imaging for a General Trajectory with the Rebinned BPF Algorithm*

PubMed Central

Bian, Junguo; Xia, Dan; Sidky, Emil Y; Pan, Xiaochuan

2010-01-01

The back-projection-filtration (BPF) algorithm has been applied to image reconstruction for cone-beam configurations with general source trajectories. The BPF algorithm can reconstruct 3-D region-of-interest (ROI) images from data containing truncations. However, like many other existing algorithms for cone-beam configurations, the BPF algorithm involves a back-projection with a spatially varying weighting factor, which can result in the non-uniform noise levels in reconstructed images and increased computation time. In this work, we propose a BPF algorithm to eliminate the spatially varying weighting factor by using a rebinned geometry for a general scanning trajectory. This proposed BPF algorithm has an improved noise property, while retaining the advantages of the original BPF algorithm such as minimum data requirement. PMID:20617122

Region of Interest Imaging for a General Trajectory with the Rebinned BPF Algorithm.

PubMed

Bian, Junguo; Xia, Dan; Sidky, Emil Y; Pan, Xiaochuan

2010-02-01

The back-projection-filtration (BPF) algorithm has been applied to image reconstruction for cone-beam configurations with general source trajectories. The BPF algorithm can reconstruct 3-D region-of-interest (ROI) images from data containing truncations. However, like many other existing algorithms for cone-beam configurations, the BPF algorithm involves a back-projection with a spatially varying weighting factor, which can result in the non-uniform noise levels in reconstructed images and increased computation time. In this work, we propose a BPF algorithm to eliminate the spatially varying weighting factor by using a rebinned geometry for a general scanning trajectory. This proposed BPF algorithm has an improved noise property, while retaining the advantages of the original BPF algorithm such as minimum data requirement.

Session of the General Assembly of IUCN (15th, Christchurch, New Zealand, October 11-23, 1981).

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources, Morges, (Switzerland).

Resolutions adopted by the 15th session of the General Assembly of the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN) are provided in this document. These resolutions focus on areas/issues related to: (1) world conservation strategy; (2) conservation and peace; (3) people, resources, and environment; (4) environmental…

Curriculum Guide for General Education Development or High School Equivalency Examination in Spanish.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sharma, Shobha; Escalona, Margaret Boyter

This curriculum guide was developed as part of the Worker Education Program for workers in the garment industry. The program was jointly developed by the workers, their employer, their union, and Northeastern Illinois University. It contains the materials required to teach a course to help Spanish-speaking individuals pass the General Educational…

19 CFR 10.171 - General.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

....171 General. (a) Statutory authority. Title V of the Trade Act of 1974 as amended (19 U.S.C. 2461-2467... by Executive order in accordance with sections 502(a)(1) and 503(a) of the Trade Act of 1974 as... the case of an association of countries which is a free trade area or customs union or which is...

Elder Abuse and Neglect in Israel: A Comparison between the General Elderly Population and Elderly New Immigrants

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Iecovich, Esther

2005-01-01

The present study investigated differences between the general elderly population and elderly new immigrants from former Soviet Union countries in regard to the incidence of elder abuse and neglect, victims' characteristics, and perpetrators' characteristics. In addition, the study sought to examine predictors of various types of abuse and…

Triple flap technique for vulvar reconstruction.

PubMed

Mercut, R; Sinna, R; Vaucher, R; Giroux, P A; Assaf, N; Lari, A; Dast, S

2018-04-09

Perineal defects are encountered ever more frequently, in the treatment of vulvar cancers or abdominoperineal resection. The surgical treatment of vulvar cancer leads to significant skin defect. The aim of the reconstruction is not to provide volume but rather to resurface perineum. We propose a new solution to cover the extensive skin defect remaining after excision. We report 3 patients who underwent large excision for vulvar cancer, with lymph node dissection. For reconstruction, we performed 3 advancement flaps. Two V-Y flaps cantered on the infra-gluteal folds and based on pudendal perforator arteries were used to cover the postero-lateral parts of the defect. The third advancement flap from the superior aspect of the defect was a Y-V Mons pubis flap. The defects were successfully covered by the 3 flap technique. The first patient suffered a non-union that slowly healed by secondary intention. For the other cases, we used the same technique, but applied negative pressure wound therapy on the sutures, with excellent results. The 3 flap technique is a simple and reliable method and the donor site morbidity is minimal. It can be realised without changing the position of the patient after tumour excision, and does not require delicate perforator dissection. This surgical option can be easily applied, allowing better management of these cases. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.

Posttraumatic thumb reconstruction.

PubMed

Muzaffar, Arshad R; Chao, James J; Friedrich, Jeffrey B; Freidrich, Jeffrey B

2005-10-01

After reading this article, the reader should be able to: 1. Discuss the critical anatomic features of the thumb as they affect on reconstructive decision making. 2. Define the goals of reconstruction. 3. Discuss an algorithm for thumb reconstruction according to the level of amputation. 4. Understand the role of prosthetics in thumb reconstruction. The function of the thumb is critical to overall hand function. Uniquely endowed with anatomic features that allow circumduction and opposition, the thumb enables activities of pinch, grasp, and fine manipulation that are essential in daily life. Destruction of the thumb secondary to trauma represents a much more significant loss than would result from loss of any other digit. Therefore, significant effort has been focused on thumb reconstruction. Numerous techniques have been described, ranging from simple osteoplastic techniques to complex microsurgical procedures. With an appreciation of the unique anatomic properties of the thumb, the hand surgeon is better able to understand the goals of thumb reconstruction and to develop an algorithm for thumb reconstruction. With such an understanding, an individualized reconstructive plan can be developed for each patient. A great many options are available for posttraumatic thumb reconstruction. Optimal results are obtained by pursuing an organized and logical approach to reconstruction based upon the level of tissue loss. Reconstruction methods depend on the location of the amputation and range from homodigital and heterodigital flaps to partial-toe transfer or a great-toe wrap-around flap to first-web-space deepening using Z-plasties, a dorsal rotation flap, or a distant flap, to distraction osteogenesis, lengthening of the thumb ray, spare parts from another injured digit in the acute setting for pollicization or heterotopic replantation, and microvascular toe transfer. Amputations in the distal third of the thumb are generally well-tolerated. The primary reconstructive issues are the restoration of a padded and sensate soft-tissue cover, as well as aesthetic considerations. First-web-space deepening will generally provide excellent results for amputations at the distal half of the middle third. In the proximal half of the middle third, lengthening of the thumb ray is generally required. Distraction lengthening of the first metacarpal is a useful and reliable technique that provides up to 3 cm of length without requiring complex microsurgical methods. Spare parts from another injured digit may be used in the acute setting for pollicization or heterotopic replantation. Microvascular toe transfer is an excellent option for elective reconstruction. However, other options also are available and may be more appropriate in some cases. Less ideal options include the various types of osteoplastic reconstruction. The reconstruction of posttraumatic thumb defects is a challenging and rewarding surgical endeavor. The value of a functioning thumb is immense, and its reconstruction is worthy of considerable effort. Despite the elegant reconstructive options available, the best results are obtained with replantation or revascularization whenever possible. Finally, the treatment plan always must be derived from a careful assessment of each patient's posttraumatic function and specific reconstructive needs.

Vital effects in coral skeletal composition display strict three-dimensional control

USGS Publications Warehouse

Meibom, A.; Yurimoto, H.; Cuif, J.-P.; Domart-Coulon, I.; Houlbreque, F.; Constantz, B.; Dauphin, Y.; Tambutte, E.; Tambutte, S.; Allemand, D.; Wooden, J.; Dunbar, R.

2006-01-01

Biological control over coral skeletal composition is poorly understood but critically important to paleoenvironmental reconstructions. We present microanalytical measurements of trace-element abundances as well as oxygen and carbon isotopic compositions of individual skeletal components in the zooxanthellate coral Colpophyllia sp. Our data show that centers of calcification (COC) have higher trace element concentrations and distinctly lighter isotopic compositions than the fibrous components of the skeleton. These observations necessitate that COC and the fibrous skeleton are precipitated by different mechanisms, which are controlled by specialized domains of the calicoblastic cell-layer. Biological processes control the composition of the skeleton even at the ultra-structure level. Copyright 2006 by the American Geophysical Union.

Maxillofacial reconstruction using custom-made artificial bones fabricated by inkjet printing technology.

PubMed

Saijo, Hideto; Igawa, Kazuyo; Kanno, Yuki; Mori, Yoshiyuki; Kondo, Kayoko; Shimizu, Koutaro; Suzuki, Shigeki; Chikazu, Daichi; Iino, Mitsuki; Anzai, Masahiro; Sasaki, Nobuo; Chung, Ung-il; Takato, Tsuyoshi

2009-01-01

Ideally, artificial bones should be dimensionally compatible with deformities, and be biodegradable and osteoconductive; however, there are no artificial bones developed to date that satisfy these requirements. We fabricated novel custom-made artificial bones from alpha-tricalcium phosphate powder using an inkjet printer and implanted them in ten patients with maxillofacial deformities. The artificial bones had dimensional compatibility in all the patients. The operation time was reduced due to minimal need for size adjustment and fixing manipulation. The postsurgical computed tomography analysis detected partial union between the artificial bones and host bone tissues. There were no serious adverse reactions. These findings provide support for further clinical studies of the inkjet-printed custom-made artificial bones.

12 CFR 715.3 - General responsibilities of the Supervisory Committee.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

..., verification of members' accounts and its additional responsibilities; (2) The credit union's accounting... adheres to the measurement and filing requirements for reports filed with the NCUA Board under § 741.6 of...

Accounting for hardware imperfections in EIT image reconstruction algorithms.

PubMed

Hartinger, Alzbeta E; Gagnon, Hervé; Guardo, Robert

2007-07-01

Electrical impedance tomography (EIT) is a non-invasive technique for imaging the conductivity distribution of a body section. Different types of EIT images can be reconstructed: absolute, time difference and frequency difference. Reconstruction algorithms are sensitive to many errors which translate into image artefacts. These errors generally result from incorrect modelling or inaccurate measurements. Every reconstruction algorithm incorporates a model of the physical set-up which must be as accurate as possible since any discrepancy with the actual set-up will cause image artefacts. Several methods have been proposed in the literature to improve the model realism, such as creating anatomical-shaped meshes, adding a complete electrode model and tracking changes in electrode contact impedances and positions. Absolute and frequency difference reconstruction algorithms are particularly sensitive to measurement errors and generally assume that measurements are made with an ideal EIT system. Real EIT systems have hardware imperfections that cause measurement errors. These errors translate into image artefacts since the reconstruction algorithm cannot properly discriminate genuine measurement variations produced by the medium under study from those caused by hardware imperfections. We therefore propose a method for eliminating these artefacts by integrating a model of the system hardware imperfections into the reconstruction algorithms. The effectiveness of the method has been evaluated by reconstructing absolute, time difference and frequency difference images with and without the hardware model from data acquired on a resistor mesh phantom. Results have shown that artefacts are smaller for images reconstructed with the model, especially for frequency difference imaging.

Tomographic image reconstruction using the cell broadband engine (CBE) general purpose hardware

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Knaup, Michael; Steckmann, Sven; Bockenbach, Olivier; Kachelrieß, Marc

2007-02-01

Tomographic image reconstruction, such as the reconstruction of CT projection values, of tomosynthesis data, PET or SPECT events, is computational very demanding. In filtered backprojection as well as in iterative reconstruction schemes, the most time-consuming steps are forward- and backprojection which are often limited by the memory bandwidth. Recently, a novel general purpose architecture optimized for distributed computing became available: the Cell Broadband Engine (CBE). Its eight synergistic processing elements (SPEs) currently allow for a theoretical performance of 192 GFlops (3 GHz, 8 units, 4 floats per vector, 2 instructions, multiply and add, per clock). To maximize image reconstruction speed we modified our parallel-beam and perspective backprojection algorithms which are highly optimized for standard PCs, and optimized the code for the CBE processor. 1-3 In addition, we implemented an optimized perspective forwardprojection on the CBE which allows us to perform statistical image reconstructions like the ordered subset convex (OSC) algorithm. 4 Performance was measured using simulated data with 512 projections per rotation and 5122 detector elements. The data were backprojected into an image of 512 3 voxels using our PC-based approaches and the new CBE- based algorithms. Both the PC and the CBE timings were scaled to a 3 GHz clock frequency. On the CBE, we obtain total reconstruction times of 4.04 s for the parallel backprojection, 13.6 s for the perspective backprojection and 192 s for a complete OSC reconstruction, consisting of one initial Feldkamp reconstruction, followed by 4 OSC iterations.

Vibration monitoring of Kraftwerk Union pressurized water reactors - Review, present status, and further development

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

Stolben, H.; Wehling, H.J.

Incipient damage to mechanical structure may be detected early in time by deviations from normal dynamic behavior. For vibration monitoring of coupled systems, only a small number of transducers are necessary, in general. On the basis, Kraftwerk Union has been involved in the development and construction of vibration monitoring systems for pressurized water reactors over the last 20 yr. The current state of the art permits vibration monitoring during normal operation by reactor personnel without expert assistance. The new SUS-86 microprocessor-based system allows further expansion toward an expert system.

The role of union democracy in the struggle for workers' health in Mexico.

PubMed

Laurell, A C

1989-01-01

In this article, the author analyzes the struggle for workers' health in Mexico, emphasizing the importance of the general and specific political context. In an overview of the legislation on industrial health and safety, the state institutions involved in the issue, and the characteristics of union organization in Mexico, the author shows that the limited activities related to workers' health have more to do with the relative political weakness of the Mexican working class than with the formal structures of legislation, state institutions, and unions. The second part of the article deals with the four most important struggles for health and safety in Mexico during the last ten years, which show some similarities. These struggles are consistently linked to processes of union democratization and tend to decline when union democracy is lost. The strategies of the companies show a common pattern: removing health issues from collective bargaining and putting them in the hands of state institutions. When workers have opposed this solution, management has used selective repression to solve the conflict. The state institutions subordinate their position to the companies' by postponing action or by doing a technically poor job. Changing the existing situation involves the social legitimation of the workers' health issue, since this would have an impact on the political processes involved, i.e., corporate control over workers, authoritarian labor relations and professionalism, and resources of the state institutions.

Factors influencing the use of registered nurse overtime in hospitals, 1995-2000.

PubMed

Berney, Barbara; Needleman, Jack; Kovner, Christine

2005-01-01

To assess nurse overtime in acute care general hospitals and the factors that influence overtime among various hospitals and in the same hospitals from year to year. Staffing data from 1995 to 2000 from 193 acute general hospitals in New York State were used to examine hospital characteristics (size, location, RN unionization, hospital ownership, and teaching status) to determine whether they were associated with nurse overtime. The average weekly overtime RNs worked was 4.5% of total hours, varying from almost none to 16.6%. At mean overtime levels, nurses were working less overtime than the mean for manufacturing workers, but, at the extreme, nurses were working more than 6 hours overtime per week. Significant differences were observed in the use of overtime by hospital ownership and by union status. Nurses in government hospitals worked less overtime than did those in nongovernment hospitals. Nurses in unionized hospitals worked slightly more overtime than did nurses in nonunionized hospitals. Hospitals varied dramatically in their overtime use. That some categories of hospitals (e.g., government-owned) used little overtime indicates that hospital management can find substitutes for overtime to meet fluctuating staffing needs. The finding that hospitals with similar characteristics varied greatly in their number of overtime hours also supported this conclusion.

Evaluation of the hydrologic system in the New Leipzig coal area, Grant and Hettinger counties, North Dakota

USGS Publications Warehouse

Armstrong, C.A.

1982-01-01

Aquifers in the New Leipzig coal area consist of sandstone beds in the Fox Hills Sandstone, the Hell Creek Formation, the Cannonball and Ludlow Members of the Fort Union Formation, and the basal part of the Tongue River Member of the Fort Union Formation. Aquifers also occur in sandstone and lignite beds in the upper part of the Tongue River Member and Sentinel Butte Member of the Fort Union Formation. Potential well yields from each of the aquifers are variable, but are less than 100 gallons per minute. Water in the Fox Hills, Hell Creek, Cannonball, and Ludlow is soft and of the sodium bicarbonate type. Water in basal Tongue River aquifer is either soft or very hard and generally is of the sodium bicarbonate type. Water in the upper Tongue River and Sentinel Butte aquifer system is very hard and generally is either of the calcium bicarbonate or sodium bicarbonate type. There is little or no contribution of ground water to Thirty Mile Creek or the Cannonball River from the area of minable coal. Coal mining will expose sulfide minerals to oxidation, and result in an increase in dissolved solids and sulfate in water in the basal Tongue River aquifer. (USGS)

Reconstructions of the Weichselian ice sheet, a comparative study of a thermo-mechanical approach to GIA driven models.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Schmidt, Peter; Lund, Björn; Näslund, Jens-Ove; Fastook, James

2014-05-01

Observations of glacial isostatic adjustment (GIA) have been used both to study the mechanical properties of the Earth and to invert for Northern Hemisphere palaeo-ice-sheets. This is typically done by solving the sea-level equation using simplified scaling laws to control ice-sheet thickness. However, past ice-sheets can also be reconstructed based on thermo-mechanical modelling driven by palaeo-climate data, invoking simple analytical models to account for the Earth's response. Commonly, both approaches use dated geological markers to constrain the ice-sheet margin location. Irrespective of the approach, the resulting ice-sheet reconstruction depends on the earth response, although the interdependence between the ice model and the earth model differs and therefore the two types of reconstructions could provide complementary information on Earth properties. We compare a thermo-mechanical reconstruction of the Weichselian ice-sheet using the UMISM model (Näslund, 2010) to two GIA driven reconstructions, ANU (Lambeck et al., 2010) and ICE-5G (Peltier & Fairbanks, 2006), commonly used in GIA modelling. We evaluate the three reconstructions both in terms of ice-sheet configurations and predicted Fennoscandian surface deformation ICE-5G comprise the largest reconstructed ice-sheet whereas ANU and UMISM are more similar in volume and areal extent. Significant differences still exists between ANU and UMISM, especially during the final deglaciation phase. Prior to the final retreat of the ice-sheet, ICE-5G is displays a massive and more or less constant ice-sheet configuration, while both ANU and UMISM fluctuates with at times almost ice-free conditions, such as during MIS3. This results in ICE-5G being close to isostatic equilibrium at LGM, whereas ANU and UMISM are not. Hence, the pre-LGM evolution of the Weichselian ice-sheet needs to be considered in GIA studies. For example, perturbing the ANU or UMISM reconstructions we find that changes more recent than 36 kyr BP may change the predicted uplift velocities by more than 0.1 mm/yr, while changes more recent than 55 kyr BP may change the predicted uplift 10 kyr ago by more than 5 m. Despite their differences we find that all three reconstructions can equally well fit observations of the present day uplift in Fennoscandia, as well as the observed sea-level curve along the Ångerman river, Sweden, albeit with different optimal earth models. However, only for ANU can a single optimal earth model be determined as a bifurcation in the optimal viscosity arises from the generally faster present day rebound rates in ICE-5G and UMISM, resulting in a range of well-fitting earth models for the latter reconstructions. Studying models with a reasonable fit to observed present day uplift velocities we find general trends of over- and under-prediction, indicating that all three ice-sheet reconstructions need improvement. In general, all three reconstructions tend to over-predict the uplift rates in southwestern Fennoscandia, whereas over Finland ICE-5G generally over-predicts and ANU generally under-predicts the uplift rates. UMISM tend to under-predict the velocities over central to northern Sweden and similar trends can also be seen in ANU and ICE-5G.

Higher order total variation regularization for EIT reconstruction.

PubMed

Gong, Bo; Schullcke, Benjamin; Krueger-Ziolek, Sabine; Zhang, Fan; Mueller-Lisse, Ullrich; Moeller, Knut

2018-01-08

Electrical impedance tomography (EIT) attempts to reveal the conductivity distribution of a domain based on the electrical boundary condition. This is an ill-posed inverse problem; its solution is very unstable. Total variation (TV) regularization is one of the techniques commonly employed to stabilize reconstructions. However, it is well known that TV regularization induces staircase effects, which are not realistic in clinical applications. To reduce such artifacts, modified TV regularization terms considering a higher order differential operator were developed in several previous studies. One of them is called total generalized variation (TGV) regularization. TGV regularization has been successively applied in image processing in a regular grid context. In this study, we adapted TGV regularization to the finite element model (FEM) framework for EIT reconstruction. Reconstructions using simulation and clinical data were performed. First results indicate that, in comparison to TV regularization, TGV regularization promotes more realistic images. Graphical abstract Reconstructed conductivity changes located on selected vertical lines. For each of the reconstructed images as well as the ground truth image, conductivity changes located along the selected left and right vertical lines are plotted. In these plots, the notation GT in the legend stands for ground truth, TV stands for total variation method, and TGV stands for total generalized variation method. Reconstructed conductivity distributions from the GREIT algorithm are also demonstrated.

Studying the Supra-National in Education: GATS, Education and Teacher Union Policies

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fredriksson, Ulf

2004-01-01

This article starts by putting the General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS) into a general context of privatisation. It is noted that the privatisation process is in many cases complex and not only about full-scale privatisation of schools. The growing trade in education must be seen in this context. GATS is not an agreement which deals with…

Reconstruction Options for Pancreaticoduodenectomy in Patients with Prior Roux-en-Y Gastric Bypass.

PubMed

Shah, Mihir M; Martin, Benjamin M; Stetler, Jamil L; Patel, Ankit D; Davis, S Scott; Sarmiento, Juan M; Lin, Edward

2017-11-01

Patients with prior Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (RYGB) operations for weight loss present reconstruction challenges during a pancreaticoduodenectomy (PD). With over 60,000 RYGB performed annually, the increasing odds of encountering such patients during a PD make it imperative to understand the RYGB anatomy and anticipate reconstruction options. This article describes the possible reconstruction options and their rationale. We reviewed our PD reconstruction options, compared them to what have been described in the literature, and derived a consensus from internal conferences comprising bariatric and hepatopancreatobiliary surgeons to describe known reconstruction options. In general, reconstruction options can include one of three options: (1) remnant gastrectomy, (2) preservation of gastric remnant, or (3) reversal of gastric bypass. This article describes individualized reconstruction options for RYGB patients undergoing PD. The reconstruction options can be tailored to the needs of the patient.

76 FR 23861 - Corporate Credit Unions

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2011-04-29

... statements, Financial statement audit, Generally accepted auditing standards, Independent public accountant... public accountant undermines the IPA's independence. The Board is delaying the effective date of this ERM... accepted auditing standards, Independent public accountant, Internal control, Internal control framework...

12 CFR 701.4 - General authorities and duties of Federal credit union directors.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-01-01

... familiarity with basic finance and accounting practices, including the ability to read and understand the... believes are matters: (i) Within the particular person's professional or expert competence, and (ii) As to...

12 CFR 701.4 - General authorities and duties of Federal credit union directors.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-01-01

... familiarity with basic finance and accounting practices, including the ability to read and understand the... believes are matters: (i) Within the particular person's professional or expert competence, and (ii) As to...

76 FR 10403 - General Motors Company, Pontiac Assembly; Pontiac, MI; Notice of Negative Determination on...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2011-02-24

... automobiles produced by the workers. The investigation also revealed that the workers did not produce a... certification. In the request for reconsideration, the International Union of United Automobile, Aerospace, and...

7 CFR 97.5 - General requirements.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... Regulations of the Department of Agriculture (Continued) AGRICULTURAL MARKETING SERVICE (Standards, Inspections, Marketing Practices), DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE (CONTINUED) COMMODITY LABORATORY TESTING PROGRAMS... International Union for the Protection of New Varieties of Plants (including states which are members of an...

Fuzzy set methods for object recognition in space applications

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Keller, James M.

1991-01-01

During the reporting period, the development of the theory and application of methodologies for decision making under uncertainty was addressed. Two subreports are included; the first on properties of general hybrid operators, while the second considers some new research on generalized threshold logic units. In the first part, the properties of the additive gamma-model, where the intersection part is first considered to be the product of the input values and the union part is obtained by an extension of De Morgan's law to fuzzy sets, is explored. Then the Yager's class of union and intersection is used in the additive gamma-model. The inputs are weighted to some power that represents their importance and thus their contribution to the compensation process. In the second part, the extension of binary logic synthesis methods to multiple valued logic synthesis methods to enable the synthesis of decision networks when the input/output variables are not binary is discussed.

A Reconstruction of Development of the Periodic Table Based on History and Philosophy of Science and Its Implications for General Chemistry Textbooks

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Brito, Angmary; Rodriguez, Maria A.; Niaz, Mansoor

2005-01-01

The objectives of this study are: (a) elaboration of a history and philosophy of science (HPS) framework based on a reconstruction of the development of the periodic table; (b) formulation of seven criteria based on the framework; and (c) evaluation of 57 freshman college-level general chemistry textbooks with respect to the presentation of the…

Generalized analog thresholding for spike acquisition at ultralow sampling rates

PubMed Central

He, Bryan D.; Wein, Alex; Varshney, Lav R.; Kusuma, Julius; Richardson, Andrew G.

2015-01-01

Efficient spike acquisition techniques are needed to bridge the divide from creating large multielectrode arrays (MEA) to achieving whole-cortex electrophysiology. In this paper, we introduce generalized analog thresholding (gAT), which achieves millisecond temporal resolution with sampling rates as low as 10 Hz. Consider the torrent of data from a single 1,000-channel MEA, which would generate more than 3 GB/min using standard 30-kHz Nyquist sampling. Recent neural signal processing methods based on compressive sensing still require Nyquist sampling as a first step and use iterative methods to reconstruct spikes. Analog thresholding (AT) remains the best existing alternative, where spike waveforms are passed through an analog comparator and sampled at 1 kHz, with instant spike reconstruction. By generalizing AT, the new method reduces sampling rates another order of magnitude, detects more than one spike per interval, and reconstructs spike width. Unlike compressive sensing, the new method reveals a simple closed-form solution to achieve instant (noniterative) spike reconstruction. The base method is already robust to hardware nonidealities, including realistic quantization error and integration noise. Because it achieves these considerable specifications using hardware-friendly components like integrators and comparators, generalized AT could translate large-scale MEAs into implantable devices for scientific investigation and medical technology. PMID:25904712

Reconstruction of Sensory Stimuli Encoded with Integrate-and-Fire Neurons with Random Thresholds

PubMed Central

Lazar, Aurel A.; Pnevmatikakis, Eftychios A.

2013-01-01

We present a general approach to the reconstruction of sensory stimuli encoded with leaky integrate-and-fire neurons with random thresholds. The stimuli are modeled as elements of a Reproducing Kernel Hilbert Space. The reconstruction is based on finding a stimulus that minimizes a regularized quadratic optimality criterion. We discuss in detail the reconstruction of sensory stimuli modeled as absolutely continuous functions as well as stimuli with absolutely continuous first-order derivatives. Reconstruction results are presented for stimuli encoded with single as well as a population of neurons. Examples are given that demonstrate the performance of the reconstruction algorithms as a function of threshold variability. PMID:24077610

Status of Water Levels and Selected Water-Quality Conditions in the Sparta-Memphis Aquifer in Arkansas and the Status of Water Levels in the Sparta Aquifer in Louisiana, Spring 2005

USGS Publications Warehouse

Schrader, T.P.; Jones, J.S.

2007-01-01

The U.S. Geological Survey in cooperation with the Arkansas Natural Resources Commission, the Arkansas Geological Commission, and the Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development has monitored water levels in the Sparta Sand of Claiborne Group and Memphis Sand of Claiborne Group since the 1920's. Ground-water withdrawals have increased while water levels have declined since monitoring was initiated. This report has been produced to describe ground-water levels in the aquifers in the Sparta Sand and Memphis Sand and provide information for the management of this valuable resource. The 2005 potentiometric-surface map of the aquifers in the Sparta Sand and Memphis Sand was constructed using water-level data collected in 333 wells in Arkansas and 120 wells in Louisiana during the spring of 2005. The highest water-level altitude measured in Arkansas was 327 feet above National Geodetic Vertical Datum of 1929 located in Grant County in the outcrop at the western boundary of the study area; the lowest water-level altitude was 189 feet below National Geodetic Vertical Datum of 1929 in Union County. The highest water-level altitude measured in Louisiana was 246 feet above National Geodetic Vertical Datum of 1929 located in Bossier Parish in the outcrop area near the western boundary of the study area; the lowest water-level altitude was 226 feet below National Geodetic Vertical Datum of 1929 in central Ouachita Parish. Three large depressions centered in Columbia, Jefferson, and Union Counties in Arkansas are the result of large withdrawals for industrial and public supplies. In Louisiana, three major pumping centers are in Ouachita, Jackson, and Lincoln Parishes. Water withdrawals from these major pumping centers primarily is used for industrial and public-supply purposes. Withdrawals from Ouachita and Lincoln Parishes and Union County, Arkansas, primarily for industrial purposes, have caused the resulting cones of depression to coalesce so that the -40 foot potentiometric contour encircles the three pumping centers. Seven smaller depressions are evident on the 2005 Sparta-Memphis potentiometric-surface map located in Webster and Winn Parishes, Louisiana, and Calhoun, Cleveland, western Columbia, Desha, and Lafayette Counties, Arkansas. The depression in Calhoun County initially was shown in the 1996-1997 potentiometric surface. The depression in Desha County initially was shown in the 1999 potentiometric surface. The depressions in Webster and Winn Parishes were shown as early as 1975. The depressions in Cleveland, western Columbia, and Lafayette Counties initially were shown in the 2003 potentiometric surface. A map of differences in water-level measurements between 2001 and 2005 was constructed using the difference between water-level measurements from 294 wells in Arkansas and 29 wells in Louisiana. The difference in water levels between 2001 and 2005 ranged from -30.1 to 44.6 feet. The largest rise of 44.6 feet in water level measured was in Union County in Arkansas. The largest decline of 30.1 feet in water level measured was in Columbia County in Arkansas. Areas with a general rise in water levels in Arkansas are shown in Arkansas, Columbia, Craighead, Jefferson, Prairie, and the western half of Union Counties. The area around west-central Union County had rises as much as 44.6 feet, with seven wells showing a rise of 20 feet or greater, which is an annual rise of 5 feet or greater. Areas in Arkansas with a general decline in water level are shown in western Bradley, eastern Calhoun, Cleveland, Cross, Desha, Drew, Lafayette, Lee, Lincoln, Lonoke, Poinsett, and the eastern half of Union Counties. In Louisiana, the water-level difference map showed a general rise in water levels in northern Claiborne, northern Webster, and northwestern Union Parishes mainly because of a decrease in industrial withdrawals in southern Arkansas, particularly Union County. Another rise in water level was indicated in western

Value of a skin island flap as a postoperative predictor of vascularized fibula graft viability in extensive diaphyseal bone defect reconstruction.

PubMed

Guo, Q-F; Xu, Z-H; Wen, S-F; Liu, Q-H; Liu, S-H; Wang, J-W; Li, X-Y; Xu, H-H

2012-09-01

To evaluate the feasibility and reliability of free vascularized fibular graft with skin island flap for reconstruction of large diaphyseal bone defect. The clinical results of vascularized fibular graft and experiences related to the importance and reliability of a monitoring island flap for the reconstruction of various long-bone defects were reviewed in 87 patients. Bony reconstruction was achieved in 82 of the 87 patients. Arterial thrombosis of anastomosed vessel in two patients and venous congestion of monitoring flap in nine patients occurred in the early postoperative periods. All of them were managed by immediate thrombectomy and reanastomosis, alternatively the thrombotic veins were replaced by new veins to anastomose with the superficial veins in five patients. Partial flap necrosis was noted in six patients, but additional surgical intervention was not required. The vascularized fibula survived and bony fusion was achieved in all patients. Postoperative stress fractures of the fibula graft occurred in 19 (21.8%) patients (once in seven patients, twice in five patients, three or more times in seven) as the mechanical stress to the graft increased. Included fracture on the tibia in 12 patients, humerus in one and femur in six. Treatments included casting in 11 patients, percutaneous pinning in one case, and adjustment of external fixator in seven patients. Bony union was finally achieved an average of 9.6 months after fracture. Correct alignment between the recipient bone and the external fixator is a prerequisite to preventing graft fracture. Vascularized fibula transfer is a valuable procedure for long-bone defects, and a skin island-monitoring flap is a simple, extremely useful, and reliable method for assessing the vascular status of vascularized fibula. Level IV. Retrospective study. Copyright © 2012. Published by Elsevier Masson SAS.

Advertising of medical devices: foreign experience and Ukrainian practice.

PubMed

Pashkov, Vitalii; Harkusha, Andrii; Bytiak, Oleksii

Chosen European foreign policy vector for Ukraine establishes its obligation to enforce the process of adaptation of the EU law regulations in the internal legal policy. The approximation of Ukrainian law to the European Union (EU) "acquis communautaire" is not only the instrument for deepening our economic cooperation with the European Union, but also the important measure to enhance further development of Ukraine in general. National legislation, which regulate advertising and promotion of medical devices (MD), is not an exception. Some key points on legal regulation of abovementioned sphere is a base of this study. Ukrainian legislation, European Union`s Law Acts, EU's member-states law, WHO Acts and Recommendations, European Medical Technology Industry Association (EUCOMED) Acts. Article is based on dialectical, comparative, analytic, synthetic and comprehensive research methods. In accordance with Ukrainian legislation, there is no special law that concerns advertising on MD in Ukraine, this sphere is regulated by general law that named ≪About advertisement≫, but it doesn't take into account even main characteristics of such a special object as medical devices (MD). Moreover, the law ≪About advertisement≫ contain discrepancies in terms that are used, these contradictions, in our opinion, must be eliminated by appropriate law reforms. The advertising and promotion of MD in EU is regulated by a combination of EU and national legislation of EU Member States, national advertising and promotion of MD are not harmonized with the EU MDD for now, resulting in a fragmented legal landscape that differs from one EU Member State to the other. Practice of adopting different codes and guides that regulate advertising, including advertising of MD, is widespread in EU and EU Member States and thus must be used in Ukraine with appropriate reformation of national law.

Cosmogenic signature of geomagnetic reversals and excursions from the Réunion event to the Matuyama-Brunhes transition (0.7-2.14 Ma interval)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Simon, Quentin; Bourlès, Didier L.; Thouveny, Nicolas; Horng, Chorng-Shern; Valet, Jean-Pierre; Bassinot, Franck; Choy, Sandrine

2018-01-01

Long-term variations of the geomagnetic dipole moment (GDM) during periods of stable polarity and in transitional states (reversals and excursions) provide key information for understanding the geodynamo regime. Following several studies dealing with the Brunhes chron and the Matuyama-Brunhes transition, this study presents a new authigenic 10Be/9Be ratio (Be-ratio) record obtained from the MD97-2143 core (western Pacific Ocean). This new Be-ratio series yields a record of GDM variations covering the early Brunhes and mid to late Matuyama time period (i.e. 700-2140 ka), independently from the relative paleointensity (RPI) record obtained from the same core, that can be compared with available RPI records and stacks. Stratigraphic offsets measured between the Be-ratio peaks and the corresponding RPI minima reach 2 to 14 cm. They can be assigned to (post-) detrital remanent magnetization (pDRM) effects leading to magnetization locking-in delays varying from 2 to 12 ka in the studied core. 10Be overproduction episodes triggered by geomagnetic dipole moment lows (GDL) linked to polarity reversals and excursions confirm the global control exerted by the GDM on cosmogenic radionuclides production. A dipole moment reconstruction derived from the Beryllium-10 (BeDiMo) was compiled and calibrated using absolute paleointensity data. This independent record complements the available paleomagnetic RPI records, permitting 1) to overcome the pDRM lock-in offsets induced below the mixing layer, 2) to confront and increase the robustness and precision of GDM reconstructions and, 3) to better constrain the chronology of geomagnetic field instabilities during the mid to late Matuyama chron. Our new 10Be derived inventory is fully compatible with the GDL series linked to geomagnetic polarity reversals and events (Matuyama-Brunhes transition, Jaramillo and Olduvai subchron boundaries, Cobb Mountain, Réunion) and it strengthens the occurrence of several excursions (Kamikatsura, Santa Rosa, Punaruu, Bjorn, Gilsa, Gardar) that were until now reported from only sparse locations.

75 FR 65049 - Union Pacific Railroad Company-Abandonment Exemption-in Pulaski County, AR

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2010-10-21

... petition filed with the Board should be sent to UP's representative: Mack H. Shumate, Jr., Senior General Attorney, 101 North Wacker Drive, 1920, Chicago, IL 60606. If the verified notice contains false or...

75 FR 35514 - Union Pacific Railroad Company-Abandonment Exemption-in Yakima County, WA

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2010-06-22

... petition filed with the Board should be sent to UP's representative: Mack H. Shumate, Jr., Senior General Attorney, 101 North Wacker Drive, Suite 1920, Chicago, IL 60606. If the verified notice contains false or...

75 FR 35513 - Union Pacific Railroad Company-Abandonment Exemption-in Yakima County, Wash.

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2010-06-22

... petition filed with the Board should be sent to UP's representative: Mack H. Shumate, Jr., Senior General Attorney, 101 North Wacker Drive, Suite 1920, Chicago, IL 60606. If the verified notice contains false or...

Computational Approaches to Vestibular Research

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Ross, Muriel D.; Wade, Charles E. (Technical Monitor)

1994-01-01

The Biocomputation Center at NASA Ames Research Center is dedicated to a union between computational, experimental and theoretical approaches to the study of neuroscience and of life sciences in general. The current emphasis is on computer reconstruction and visualization of vestibular macular architecture in three-dimensions (3-D), and on mathematical modeling and computer simulation of neural activity in the functioning system. Our methods are being used to interpret the influence of spaceflight on mammalian vestibular maculas in a model system, that of the adult Sprague-Dawley rat. More than twenty 3-D reconstructions of type I and type II hair cells and their afferents have been completed by digitization of contours traced from serial sections photographed in a transmission electron microscope. This labor-intensive method has now been replace d by a semiautomated method developed in the Biocomputation Center in which conventional photography is eliminated. All viewing, storage and manipulation of original data is done using Silicon Graphics workstations. Recent improvements to the software include a new mesh generation method for connecting contours. This method will permit the investigator to describe any surface, regardless of complexity, including highly branched structures such as are routinely found in neurons. This same mesh can be used for 3-D, finite volume simulation of synapse activation and voltage spread on neuronal surfaces visualized via the reconstruction process. These simulations help the investigator interpret the relationship between neuroarchitecture and physiology, and are of assistance in determining which experiments will best test theoretical interpretations. Data are also used to develop abstract, 3-D models that dynamically display neuronal activity ongoing in the system. Finally, the same data can be used to visualize the neural tissue in a virtual environment. Our exhibit will depict capabilities of our computational approaches and some of our findings from their application. For example, our research has demonstrated that maculas of adult mammals retain the property of synaptic plasticity. Ribbon synapses increase numerically and undergo changes in type and distribution (p<0.0001) in type II hair cells after exposure to microgravity for as few as nine days. The finding of macular synaptic plasticity is pertinent to the clinic, and may help explain some. balance disorders in humans. The software used in our investigations will be demonstrated for those interested in applying it in their own research.

Does anonymous sperm donation increase the risk for unions between relatives and the incidence of autosomal recessive diseases due to consanguinity?

PubMed

Serre, Jean-Louis; Leutenegger, Anne-Louise; Bernheim, Alain; Fellous, Marc; Rouen, Alexandre; Siffroi, Jean-Pierre

2014-03-01

In France gamete donation and notably sperm donation are anonymous. It has been claimed that anonymous artificial insemination by donor (AID) could highly contribute to an increase in the level of consanguinity and the incidence of autosomal recessive diseases, due to the unions between offspring of anonymous donors, unaware of their biological kinship, with the special case of unions between half-siblings. The actual incidence of consanguinity due to AID was compared with that resulting from the two other main sources of consanguinity and recessive diseases, i.e. voluntary unions between related individuals or inadvertent unions between the offspring of a common unknown male ancestor (false paternity). From these data, we estimated that expected unions in France between half sibs per year are 0.12 between offspring of sperm donors (1.2 every 10 years) and 0.5 between offspring of common male ancestors through false paternity (5 every 10 years). More generally, the inadvertent unions between false paternity offspring are roughly four times more frequent than those resulting from anonymous AID. We estimated that in the future, when AID has been in practice for several generations, out the 820 000 annual births in France, respectively, 6 and 25 births will be consanguineous through an unknown common ancestor related to anonymous AID and to a false paternity, both of which are negligible when compared with the 1256 children born from first-degree cousins. About 672 children per year are born with a recessive genetic disease due to the panmictic risk and additional affected cases due to consanguinity would be 34.54 for first-cousin offspring, 0.33 for offspring of individuals related due to false paternity and 0.079 for offspring of individuals related due to anonymous AID. Anonymous AID would therefore be responsible for 0.46% of consanguineous births and for 0.01% of recessive diseases. Therefore, the effect of anonymous AID on half-sibling unions, consanguinity and recessive disease incidence can be regarded as marginal.

CONSANGUINITY AND INBREEDING COEFFICIENT IN TRIBAL PASHTUNS INHABITING THE TURBULENT AND WAR-AFFECTED TERRITORY OF BAJAUR AGENCY, NORTH-WEST PAKISTAN.

PubMed

Ahmad, Bashir; Rehman, Atta Ur; Malik, Sajid

2016-01-01

The north-western populations of Pakistan in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) adjoining the Pakistan-Afghanistan border are an amalgamation of native and migrated Pashtun tribes. These tribal populations are in transition due to war conditions and geo-political turmoil on both sides of the border since the Soviet invasion in 1979. Bio-demographic and epidemiological data for these tribes are scarce. A prospective cross-sectional sample of 967 males was selected from a representative Pashtun population of Bajaur Agency, and information obtained on bio-demographic variables and marital union types. Analysis of these data revealed that consanguinity was 22.34% and the inbreeding coefficient F was calculated to be 0.0134. The inbreeding coefficient was observed to be higher in subjects who were illiterate, had unskilled jobs and who belonged to younger age categories, extended families and the Tarkalani tribe. Further analyses with respect to temporal variables like subject's age, year of marriage and age at marriage revealed that after a transition in marital union types in the early 80s, there has been a declining trend in the rate of consanguineous unions. Further, consanguineous unions in the parental generation were only 5%, but parental marriage types were predictors of subjects' marital union types. The data further establish that, contrary to a general notion about a high consanguinity rate in Pakistan, consanguineous unions are not common in Bajaur Agency and first cousin marriage is not the preferred type. Furthermore, this research shows that there is a great regional variation in the pattern of consanguinity in Pakistan that needs to be documented in order to draw a more comprehensive picture of the inbreeding coefficient in the country.

Integrating Genetic and Functional Genomic Data to Elucidate Common Disease Tra

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Schadt, Eric

2005-03-01

The reconstruction of genetic networks in mammalian systems is one of the primary goals in biological research, especially as such reconstructions relate to elucidating not only common, polygenic human diseases, but living systems more generally. Here I present a statistical procedure for inferring causal relationships between gene expression traits and more classic clinical traits, including complex disease traits. This procedure has been generalized to the gene network reconstruction problem, where naturally occurring genetic variations in segregating mouse populations are used as a source of perturbations to elucidate tissue-specific gene networks. Differences in the extent of genetic control between genders and among four different tissues are highlighted. I also demonstrate that the networks derived from expression data in segregating mouse populations using the novel network reconstruction algorithm are able to capture causal associations between genes that result in increased predictive power, compared to more classically reconstructed networks derived from the same data. This approach to causal inference in large segregating mouse populations over multiple tissues not only elucidates fundamental aspects of transcriptional control, it also allows for the objective identification of key drivers of common human diseases.

European Union’s Military Crisis Management: Challenges and Perspectives

DTIC Science & Technology

2012-06-08

respond quickly and decisively, but “the curious alchemy of German leadership, Italian support for it, British limitation of it, [and] French ambition...EUROPEAN UNION’S MILITARY CRISIS MANAGEMENT: CHALLENGES AND PERSPECTIVES A thesis presented to the Faculty of the U.S. Army...Command and General Staff College in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree MASTER OF MILITARY ART AND SCIENCE General Studies

The Danish Perspective on Baltic Security.

DTIC Science & Technology

1998-01-01

policy. This socialist wing mirrors a general reluctance in the population against engaging in a centralized federal European union. This reluctance...minister Andrei Kozyrev in 1993 that an effective presence in Kaliningrad is essential, and he characterized the area as the cornerstone of Russian...government and was able to heavily influence Denmark’s NATO policy. The socialist wing mirrors a general reluctance of the Danish populace to

Scalar wave-optical reconstruction of plenoptic camera images.

PubMed

Junker, André; Stenau, Tim; Brenner, Karl-Heinz

2014-09-01

We investigate the reconstruction of plenoptic camera images in a scalar wave-optical framework. Previous publications relating to this topic numerically simulate light propagation on the basis of ray tracing. However, due to continuing miniaturization of hardware components it can be assumed that in combination with low-aperture optical systems this technique may not be generally valid. Therefore, we study the differences between ray- and wave-optical object reconstructions of true plenoptic camera images. For this purpose we present a wave-optical reconstruction algorithm, which can be run on a regular computer. Our findings show that a wave-optical treatment is capable of increasing the detail resolution of reconstructed objects.

Joint MR-PET reconstruction using a multi-channel image regularizer

PubMed Central

Koesters, Thomas; Otazo, Ricardo; Bredies, Kristian; Sodickson, Daniel K

2016-01-01

While current state of the art MR-PET scanners enable simultaneous MR and PET measurements, the acquired data sets are still usually reconstructed separately. We propose a new multi-modality reconstruction framework using second order Total Generalized Variation (TGV) as a dedicated multi-channel regularization functional that jointly reconstructs images from both modalities. In this way, information about the underlying anatomy is shared during the image reconstruction process while unique differences are preserved. Results from numerical simulations and in-vivo experiments using a range of accelerated MR acquisitions and different MR image contrasts demonstrate improved PET image quality, resolution, and quantitative accuracy. PMID:28055827

The Pluto Affair: When Professionals talk to Professionals with the Public Watching

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lindberg Christensen, Lars

This paper gives a first-hand look behind the scenes of the Press Room at the International Astronomical Union (IAU) XXVIth General Assembly in Prague that was the setting of one of the most discussed stories in 2006 - the much hated and loved International Astronomical Union resolution defining a planet. The vote passing the resolution that - as a side-effect - changed Pluto's status to a "dwarf planet" and resulted in an unprecedented emotional argument about our Solar System. What actually happened in Prague? What were the negative and positive outcomes of the Pluto Affair? What can science communicators learn from this experience?

Emerging technologies and perspectives for nutrition research in European Union 7th Framework Programme.

PubMed

de Froidmont-Görtz, Isabelle B M

2009-12-01

Nutrition trends in Europe are driven by taste, health and convenience. The possibilities of research using new technologies and tools such as nutrigenomics, imaging techniques, nanotechnology, bioinformatics, cognitive sciences, innovative processes are very promising to support these nutrition trends and in particular their health aspects. This is supported by European Union research. The opportunities offered in the 7th Framework Programme (FP7), among other innovations, will contribute to the general aim of improving nutrition policy as well as improving products from the food industry in accordance with the Lisbon strategy to create employment and improve the quality of life of the European citizens.

Surveillance of moist snuff: total nicotine, moisture, pH, un-ionized nicotine, and tobacco-specific nitrosamines.

PubMed

Richter, Patricia; Hodge, Knachelle; Stanfill, Stephen; Zhang, Liqin; Watson, Clifford

2008-11-01

In 2005, approximately 2.3% of U.S. adults used smokeless tobacco. Moist snuff leads all types of smokeless tobacco in revenues and marketing expenditures. The U.S. Surgeon General has concluded that smokeless tobacco use can lead to nicotine addiction. The National Toxicology Program of the National Institutes of Health has classified smokeless tobacco as a human carcinogen. Tobacco-specific nitrosamines (TSNAs) are potent carcinogens in smokeless tobacco products, and the pH of the product influences the content of un-ionized nicotine which is the form of nicotine most rapidly absorbed in the mouth. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention analyzed 40 top-selling brands of moist snuff to measure nicotine, moisture, pH, un-ionized nicotine, and TSNAs, including 4-(methylnitrosamino)-1-(3-pyridyl)-1-butanol (NNAL). The study findings indicate that moist snuff brands varied widely in content of rapidly absorbed, addictive un-ionized nicotine (500-fold range) and of carcinogenic TSNAs (18-fold range). Product characteristics such as packaging and moisture content appeared to be correlated with concentrations of un-ionized nicotine, and flavor characteristics of low-priced brands may correlate with TSNA concentrations. These findings warrant further study in light of (a) the marketing of smokeless tobacco for use in places where smoking is prohibited, (b) the promotion of smokeless tobacco as a harm-reduction product, and (c) the ever-expanding number of highly flavored smokeless varieties brought to the market.

Revisiting Soviet oil subsidies to East Europe: System maintenance in the Soviet hegemony, 1970--1984

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Thomas, Mark Andrew

Throughout the 1970s and 1980s the Soviet Union sold oil shipments to the member-states of the Council of Mutual Economic Assistance (CMEA) at a fraction of the world market price (wmp). Contrary to arguments made by previous scholars that it paid a subsidy, namely the difference between the wmp and the CMEA price, either as a reward for material contributions to Soviet foreign policy objectives or as a consequence of membership in a customs union, the Soviet Union provided subsidized oil shipments as a form of economic assistance in maintaining its hegemony. Using non-parametric statistical analysis of previous scholars' data and comparative case studies based on interviews of Soviet decision-makers and on archival research, this study shows that the Soviet Union acted as a hegemon, which created a protectionist trade regime, used oil policy as means of hegemonic maintenance. The CMEA, the embodiment of values espoused in the Soviet trade regime identified as "embedded supranationalism", stood as the institutional antithesis of a customs unions, which embodied the values of the Western liberal trade regime. Soviet leaders did not use oil subsidies or trade relations in general as means of calibrating CMEA member-states' domestic or foreign policy behavior. Soviet leaders used subsidized oil as a means of supporting East European national economic development with the ultimate goal of creating politically legitimate governments thereby ensuring political stability in its cordon sanitaire with the West.

48 CFR 247.270-1 - Definitions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... bargaining agreement between the maritime industry and the unions at a specific port; and (2) Payments for workmen's compensation, social security taxes, unemployment insurance, taxes, liability and property damage insurance, general and administrative expenses, and profit. Stevedoring is the— (1) Loading of...

75 FR 35873 - Union Pacific Railroad Company-Abandonment Exemption-in San Mateo County, CA

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2010-06-23

... petition filed with the Board should be sent to UP's representative: Mack H. Shumate, Jr., Senior General Attorney, 101 North Wacker Drive, Suite 1920, Chicago, IL 60606. If the verified notice contains false or...

29 CFR 452.74 - Expenditures permitted.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... Regulations Relating to Labor OFFICE OF LABOR-MANAGEMENT STANDARDS, DEPARTMENT OF LABOR LABOR-MANAGEMENT STANDARDS GENERAL STATEMENT CONCERNING THE ELECTION PROVISIONS OF THE LABOR-MANAGEMENT REPORTING AND... views to the membership prior to an election. Similarly, a union may issue information sheets containing...

Reconstruction of 2D PET data with Monte Carlo generated system matrix for generalized natural pixels

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Vandenberghe, Stefaan; Staelens, Steven; Byrne, Charles L.; Soares, Edward J.; Lemahieu, Ignace; Glick, Stephen J.

2006-06-01

In discrete detector PET, natural pixels are image basis functions calculated from the response of detector pairs. By using reconstruction with natural pixel basis functions, the discretization of the object into a predefined grid can be avoided. Here, we propose to use generalized natural pixel reconstruction. Using this approach, the basis functions are not the detector sensitivity functions as in the natural pixel case but uniform parallel strips. The backprojection of the strip coefficients results in the reconstructed image. This paper proposes an easy and efficient way to generate the matrix M directly by Monte Carlo simulation. Elements of the generalized natural pixel system matrix are formed by calculating the intersection of a parallel strip with the detector sensitivity function. These generalized natural pixels are easier to use than conventional natural pixels because the final step from solution to a square pixel representation is done by simple backprojection. Due to rotational symmetry in the PET scanner, the matrix M is block circulant and only the first blockrow needs to be stored. Data were generated using a fast Monte Carlo simulator using ray tracing. The proposed method was compared to a listmode MLEM algorithm, which used ray tracing for doing forward and backprojection. Comparison of the algorithms with different phantoms showed that an improved resolution can be obtained using generalized natural pixel reconstruction with accurate system modelling. In addition, it was noted that for the same resolution a lower noise level is present in this reconstruction. A numerical observer study showed the proposed method exhibited increased performance as compared to a standard listmode EM algorithm. In another study, more realistic data were generated using the GATE Monte Carlo simulator. For these data, a more uniform contrast recovery and a better contrast-to-noise performance were observed. It was observed that major improvements in contrast recovery were obtained with MLEM when the correct system matrix was used instead of simple ray tracing. The correct modelling was the major cause of improved contrast for the same background noise. Less important factors were the choice of the algorithm (MLEM performed better than ART) and the basis functions (generalized natural pixels gave better results than pixels).

Successful correction of tibial bone deformity through multiple surgical procedures, liquid nitrogen-pretreated bone tumor autograft, three-dimensional external fixation, and internal fixation in a patient with primary osteosarcoma: a case report.

PubMed

Takeuchi, Akihiko; Yamamoto, Norio; Shirai, Toshiharu; Nishida, Hideji; Hayashi, Katsuhiro; Watanabe, Koji; Miwa, Shinji; Tsuchiya, Hiroyuki

2015-12-07

In a previous report, we described a method of reconstruction using tumor-bearing autograft treated by liquid nitrogen for malignant bone tumor. Here we present the first case of bone deformity correction following a tumor-bearing frozen autograft via three-dimensional computerized reconstruction after multiple surgeries. A 16-year-old female student presented with pain in the left lower leg and was diagnosed with a low-grade central tibial osteosarcoma. Surgical bone reconstruction was performed using a tumor-bearing frozen autograft. Bone union was achieved at 7 months after the first surgical procedure. However, local tumor recurrence and lung metastases occurred 2 years later, at which time a second surgical procedure was performed. Five years later, the patient developed a 19° varus deformity and underwent a third surgical procedure, during which an osteotomy was performed using the Taylor Spatial Frame three-dimensional external fixation technique. A fourth corrective surgical procedure was performed in which internal fixation was achieved with a locking plate. Two years later, and 10 years after the initial diagnosis of tibial osteosarcoma, the bone deformity was completely corrected, and the patient's limb function was good. We present the first report in which a bone deformity due to a primary osteosarcoma was corrected using a tumor-bearing frozen autograft, followed by multiple corrective surgical procedures that included osteotomy, three-dimensional external fixation, and internal fixation.

Constructing interethnic conflict and cooperation: why some people harmed Jews and others helped them during the Holocaust in Romania.

PubMed

Dumitru, Diana; Johnson, Carter

2011-01-01

The authors draw on a natural experiment to demonstrate that states can reconstruct conflictual interethnic relationships into cooperative relationships in relatively short periods of time. The article examines differences in how the gentile population in each of two neighboring territories in Romania treated its Jewish population during the Holocaust. These territories had been part of tsarist Russia and subject to state-sponsored anti-Semitism until 1917. During the interwar period one territory became part of Romania, which continued anti-Semitic policies, and the other became part of the Soviet Union, which pursued an inclusive nationality policy, fighting against inherited anti-Semitism and working to integrate its Jews. Both territories were then reunited under Romanian administration during World War II, when Romania began to destroy its Jewish population. The authors demonstrate that, despite a uniform Romanian state presence during the Holocaust that encouraged gentiles to victimize Jews, the civilian population in the area that had been part of the Soviet Union was less likely to harm and more likely to aid Jews as compared with the region that had been part of Romania. Their evidence suggests that the state construction of interethnic relationships can become internalized by civilians and outlive the life of the state itself.

Muslim Middle Eastern clients' reflections on their relationship with their occupational therapists in mental health care.

PubMed

Pooremamali, Parvin; Eklund, Mona; Östman, Margareta; Persson, Dennis

2012-07-01

Persons with a Middle Eastern background represent a minority in Sweden which has significantly increased in size over recent years. The purpose of the present study was to explore the elements that shape the experiences and perceptions of clients with a Middle Eastern background living by Muslim norms who received occupational therapy in mental health care at the time of participating in the study. The study included interviews with 11 clients who received occupational therapy in mental health care. Data collection and analysis were carried out in accordance with the grounded theory approach. One core category, desiring a union, described the clients' desire for an alliance with the therapists that encompassed the realities and truths embedded in their values, preferences, world-views, and belief systems, as well as a wish to reconstruct their abilities to function and perform daily life tasks within their cultural contexts. The core category included sub-categories: desiring relationship, desiring affiliation, and desiring affirmation as well as some related components. The overall findings showed a tentative model in which the notion of mahram affinity was embedded. The results demonstrated that the clients' views regarding desiring a union had their support in collectivistic world-views that often clash with those of the therapists.

High dose teriparatide (rPTH1-34) therapy increases callus volume and enhances radiographic healing at 8-weeks in a massive canine femoral allograft model.

PubMed

Nishitani, Kohei; Mietus, Zachary; Beck, Christopher A; Ito, Hiromu; Matsuda, Shuichi; Awad, Hani A; Ehrhart, Nicole; Schwarz, Edward M

2017-01-01

Small animal studies have demonstrated significant high-dose recombinant parathyroid hormone1-34 (rPTH1-34) effects on intercalary allograft healing. Towards a human adjuvant therapy to decrease non-unions, we evaluated rPTH1-34 safety and efficacy in a clinically relevant canine femoral allograft model. Adult female mongrel hounds (n = 20) received a 5cm mid-diaphyseal osteotomy reconstructed with a plated allograft, and were randomized to: 1) Placebo (n = 5; daily saline), 2) Continuous rPTH1-34 (n = 7; 5 μg/kg/day s.c. from day 1-55 post-op), or 3) Delayed rPTH1-34 (n = 8; 5 μg/kg/day s.c. from day 14-28 post-op). Safety was assessed by physical behavior and blood calcium monitoring. Cone beam CT (CB-CT) was performed on days 14, 28 and 56 post-op to assess 2D cortical healing, 3D bone volume, and Union Ratio. Biomechanical testing and dynamic histomorphometry were also performed. The high drug dose was poorly tolerated, as most dogs receiving rPTH1-34 had to be given intravenous saline, and one dog died from hypercalcemia. Continuous rPTH1-34 significantly increased 2D healing and callus volumes at 4-weeks versus Placebo, and sustained the significant increase in cortical union at 8-week (p<0.05). These rPTH1-34 effects were confirmed by histomorphometry, revealing significant increases in mineral apposition rates (MAR) on host bone and graft-host junctions (p<0.05). Delayed rPTH1-34 significantly increased callus volume and MAR at 8 weeks (p<0.05). Although no biomechanical differences were observed, as expected for early healing, the results demonstrated that 2D RUST scoring significantly correlated with torsional biomechanics (p<0.01). In conclusion, 8-weeks of intermittent high-dose rPTH1-34 treatment significantly increases callus formation and accelerates bony union of intercalary massive allografts in a clinically relevant canine model, but with serious side-effects from hypercalcemia.

High dose teriparatide (rPTH1-34) therapy increases callus volume and enhances radiographic healing at 8-weeks in a massive canine femoral allograft model

PubMed Central

Mietus, Zachary; Beck, Christopher A.; Ito, Hiromu; Matsuda, Shuichi; Awad, Hani A.; Ehrhart, Nicole; Schwarz, Edward M.

2017-01-01

Small animal studies have demonstrated significant high-dose recombinant parathyroid hormone1-34 (rPTH1-34) effects on intercalary allograft healing. Towards a human adjuvant therapy to decrease non-unions, we evaluated rPTH1-34 safety and efficacy in a clinically relevant canine femoral allograft model. Adult female mongrel hounds (n = 20) received a 5cm mid-diaphyseal osteotomy reconstructed with a plated allograft, and were randomized to: 1) Placebo (n = 5; daily saline), 2) Continuous rPTH1-34 (n = 7; 5 μg/kg/day s.c. from day 1–55 post-op), or 3) Delayed rPTH1-34 (n = 8; 5 μg/kg/day s.c. from day 14–28 post-op). Safety was assessed by physical behavior and blood calcium monitoring. Cone beam CT (CB-CT) was performed on days 14, 28 and 56 post-op to assess 2D cortical healing, 3D bone volume, and Union Ratio. Biomechanical testing and dynamic histomorphometry were also performed. The high drug dose was poorly tolerated, as most dogs receiving rPTH1-34 had to be given intravenous saline, and one dog died from hypercalcemia. Continuous rPTH1-34 significantly increased 2D healing and callus volumes at 4-weeks versus Placebo, and sustained the significant increase in cortical union at 8-week (p<0.05). These rPTH1-34 effects were confirmed by histomorphometry, revealing significant increases in mineral apposition rates (MAR) on host bone and graft-host junctions (p<0.05). Delayed rPTH1-34 significantly increased callus volume and MAR at 8 weeks (p<0.05). Although no biomechanical differences were observed, as expected for early healing, the results demonstrated that 2D RUST scoring significantly correlated with torsional biomechanics (p<0.01). In conclusion, 8-weeks of intermittent high-dose rPTH1-34 treatment significantly increases callus formation and accelerates bony union of intercalary massive allografts in a clinically relevant canine model, but with serious side-effects from hypercalcemia. PMID:29020057

Economics in Counterinsurgency: Analyzing and Applying History’s Lessons on Economic Strategy

DTIC Science & Technology

2014-06-13

Reconstruction and Humanitarian Affairs PCO Project and Contracting Office PRT Provincial Reconstruction Team SIGAR Special Inspector General for...and Contracting Office, or PCO , appear to have been unmindful of the historical ERP’s strengths and weaknesses. . . . One might say, without undue...purview of the US Embassy mission, which established the Iraqi Reconstruction and Management Office (IRMO) and the Project and Contracting Office ( PCO

Interleaved diffusion-weighted EPI improved by adaptive partial-Fourier and multi-band multiplexed sensitivity-encoding reconstruction

PubMed Central

Chang, Hing-Chiu; Guhaniyogi, Shayan; Chen, Nan-kuei

2014-01-01

Purpose We report a series of techniques to reliably eliminate artifacts in interleaved echo-planar imaging (EPI) based diffusion weighted imaging (DWI). Methods First, we integrate the previously reported multiplexed sensitivity encoding (MUSE) algorithm with a new adaptive Homodyne partial-Fourier reconstruction algorithm, so that images reconstructed from interleaved partial-Fourier DWI data are free from artifacts even in the presence of either a) motion-induced k-space energy peak displacement, or b) susceptibility field gradient induced fast phase changes. Second, we generalize the previously reported single-band MUSE framework to multi-band MUSE, so that both through-plane and in-plane aliasing artifacts in multi-band multi-shot interleaved DWI data can be effectively eliminated. Results The new adaptive Homodyne-MUSE reconstruction algorithm reliably produces high-quality and high-resolution DWI, eliminating residual artifacts in images reconstructed with previously reported methods. Furthermore, the generalized MUSE algorithm is compatible with multi-band and high-throughput DWI. Conclusion The integration of the multi-band and adaptive Homodyne-MUSE algorithms significantly improves the spatial-resolution, image quality, and scan throughput of interleaved DWI. We expect that the reported reconstruction framework will play an important role in enabling high-resolution DWI for both neuroscience research and clinical uses. PMID:24925000

Statistical image reconstruction from correlated data with applications to PET

PubMed Central

Alessio, Adam; Sauer, Ken; Kinahan, Paul

2008-01-01

Most statistical reconstruction methods for emission tomography are designed for data modeled as conditionally independent Poisson variates. In reality, due to scanner detectors, electronics and data processing, correlations are introduced into the data resulting in dependent variates. In general, these correlations are ignored because they are difficult to measure and lead to computationally challenging statistical reconstruction algorithms. This work addresses the second concern, seeking to simplify the reconstruction of correlated data and provide a more precise image estimate than the conventional independent methods. In general, correlated variates have a large non-diagonal covariance matrix that is computationally challenging to use as a weighting term in a reconstruction algorithm. This work proposes two methods to simplify the use of a non-diagonal covariance matrix as the weighting term by (a) limiting the number of dimensions in which the correlations are modeled and (b) adopting flexible, yet computationally tractable, models for correlation structure. We apply and test these methods with simple simulated PET data and data processed with the Fourier rebinning algorithm which include the one-dimensional correlations in the axial direction and the two-dimensional correlations in the transaxial directions. The methods are incorporated into a penalized weighted least-squares 2D reconstruction and compared with a conventional maximum a posteriori approach. PMID:17921576

Strategies for public health research in European Union countries.

PubMed

Grimaud, Olivier; McCarthy, Mark; Conceição, Claudia

2013-11-01

'Health' is an identifiable theme within the European Union multi-annual research programmes. Public Health Innovation and Research in Europe (PHIRE), led by the European Public Health Association, sought to identify public health research strategies in EU member states. Within PHIRE, national public health associations reviewed structures for health research, held stakeholder workshops and produced reports. This information, supplemented by further web searches, including using assisted translation, was analysed for national research strategies and health research strategies. All countries described general research strategies, outlining organizational and capacity objectives. Thematic fields, including health, are mentioned in some strategies. A health research strategy was identified for 15 EU countries and not for 12. Ministries of health led research strategies for nine countries. Public health research was identified in only three strategies. National research strategies did not refer to the European Union's health research programme. Public health research strategies of European countries need to be developed by ministries of health, working with the research community to achieve the European Research Area.

Treatment of a Femur Nonunion with Microsurgical Corticoperiosteal Pedicled Flap from the Medial Femoral Condyle

PubMed Central

Guzzini, Matteo; Guidi, Marco; Civitenga, Carolina; Ferri, Germano; Ferretti, Andrea

2016-01-01

Introduction. The vascularized corticoperiosteal flap is harvested from the medial femoral condyle and it is nourished by the articular branch of the descending genicular artery and the superomedial genicular artery. This flap is usually harvested as a free flap for the reconstruction of bone defects at forearm, distal radius, carpus, hand, and recently at lower limb too. Case Report. A 50-year-old Caucasian man referred to our department for hypertrophic nonunion of the distal femur, refractory to the conservative treatments. The first surgical choice was the revision of the nail and the bone reconstruction with a corticoperiosteal pedicled flap from the medial femoral condyle. We considered union to have occurred 3.5 months after surgery when radiographs showed bridging of at least three of the four bony cortices and clinically the patient was able to walk with full weight bearing without any pain. At the last follow-up (25 months), the patient was completely satisfied with the procedure. Discussion. The corticoperiosteal flap allows a faster healing of fractures with a minimal morbidity at the donor site. We suggest that the corticoperiosteal pedicled flap graft is a reliable and effective treatment for distal femur nonunion. PMID:27064589

[Pedicled vascularized bone grafts from the dorsum of the distal radius for treatment of scaphoid nonunions].

PubMed

Sauerbier, Michael; Bishop, Allen T; Ofer, Nina

2009-11-01

Bony healing and reconstruction of the scaphoid with use of a reverse-flow pedicle vascularized bone graft from the dorsal aspect of the distal radius. Revitalization of the proximal fragment in case of avascular necrosis. Scaphoid nonunion, especially of the proximal pole. Nonunion after failed attempts of autogenous nonvascularized bone grafting. Avascular necrosis of the scaphoid (Preiser's disease). Avascular osteonecrosis of other carpal bones (i.e., Kienböck's disease stage II and IIIa). However, these will not be addressed in this paper. Advance carpal collapse (SNAC [scaphoid nonunion advanced collapse] wrist stage II and III). Avascular necrosis with broken proximal pole of the scaphoid. Malformation, disease or previous injury of the vascular system. Reconstruction of the scaphoid by interposition of a vascularized bone graft from the dorsum of the distal radius, where several vascularized bone grafts can be harvested, and fixation by a scaphoid screw. Management Immobilization for 6 weeks in a forearm cast including the first phalanx of the thumb. 48 scaphoid nonunions were treated with 1,2-ICSRA-based (intercompartmental supraretinacular artery) vascularized bone grafts: 34 scaphoid nonunions went on to union at an average of 15.6 weeks after surgery.

Evaluating the effects of historical land cover change on summertime weather and climate in New Jersey: Land cover and surface energy budget changes

USGS Publications Warehouse

Wichansky, P.S.; Steyaert, L.T.; Walko, R.L.; Waever, C.P.

2008-01-01

The 19th-century agrarian landscape of New Jersey (NJ) and the surrounding region has been extensively transformed to the present-day land cover by urbanization, reforestation, and localized areas of deforestation. This study used a mesoscale atmospheric numerical model to investigate the sensitivity of the warm season climate of NJ to these land cover changes. Reconstructed 1880s-era and present-day land cover data sets were used as surface boundary conditions for a set of simulations performed with the Regional Atmospheric Modeling System (RAMS). Three-member ensembles with historical and present-day land cover were compared to examine the sensitivity of surface air and dew point temperatures, rainfall, and the individual components of the surface energy budget to these land cover changes. Mean temperatures for the present-day landscape were 0.3-0.6??C warmer than for the historical landscape over a considerable portion of NJ and the surrounding region, with daily maximum temperatures at least 1.0??C warmer over some of the highly urbanized locations. Reforested regions, however, were slightly cooler. Dew point temperatures decreased by 0.3-0.6??C, suggesting drier, less humid near-surface air for the present-day landscape. Surface warming was generally associated with repartitioning of net radiation from latent to sensible heat flux, and conversely for cooling. While urbanization was accompanied by strong surface albedo decreases and increases in net shortwave radiation, reforestation and potential changes in forest composition have generally increased albedos and also enhanced landscape heterogeneity. The increased deciduousness of forests may have further reduced net downward longwave radiation. Copyright 2008 by the American Geophysical Union.

Assessment Report of US-Japan-Europe Collaborative Research on Probe Data International Probe Data Work Group Phase 2.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2016-01-01

The United States Department of Transportation (USDOT), the Road Bureau of Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport, and Tourism (MLIT) of Japan, and the European Unions European Commission Directorate General for Communications Networks, Conte...

Selected Reference Books of 1992.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

McIlvaine, Eileen

1993-01-01

Presents an annotated bibliography of 40 recent scholarly and general works of interest to reference workers in university libraries. Topics areas covered include philosophy, religion, language, literature, architecture, economics, law, area studies, Russia and the Soviet Union, women's studies, and Christopher Columbus. New editions and…

JPRS Report, Soviet Union, World Economy & International Relations, No. 4, April 1987

DTIC Science & Technology

1987-08-28

revolutionary and who are totally suited by economic stagnation and the conservation of elements of social corrosion, social indifference and crisis ...important features and singularities of the general crisis of capitalism in the current situation and determine factors of its further...were made the basis of the concept of the three stages of the general crisis of capitalism, which was formulated by creative Marxist-Leninist thought

International Issues: Cross-border mobility of junior neurologists within and to the European Union.

PubMed

Macerollo, Antonella; Varga, Edina T; Struhal, Walter; Györfi, Orsolya; Kobeleva, Xenia; Sellner, Johann

2014-09-23

To assess the general interest in and motivation for cross-border mobility among residents and junior neurologists from member states of the European Union and neighboring countries. Questionnaire-based paper survey among 118 participants of a neurology course. Ninety-seven (82%) participants returned the survey. Most of them had at one point considered relocating within or to the European Union for postgraduate education (87%) or employment (71%). Common motivations were superior prospects for clinical training (85%), resources at work and academic environment (both 80%), and remuneration (70%). Barely half of the surveyed intended to return to their home country. The attractiveness of Europe as a destination for migration was ranked over other continents. The most common reasons that reduce enthusiasm for relocation were the loss of family connection (55%) and uncertain future prospects (41%), whereas language barriers were less relevant (21%). There is keen interest of the upcoming generation of neurologists to relocate within and to the European Union. The motives include regional differences in training and career opportunities as well as economic welfare. Appropriate steps toward the harmonization of educational and career prospects are urgently required to ensure adequate provision of neurology service and patient care throughout Europe. © 2014 American Academy of Neurology.

Reconstruction of networks from one-step data by matching positions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wu, Jianshe; Dang, Ni; Jiao, Yang

2018-05-01

It is a challenge in estimating the topology of a network from short time series data. In this paper, matching positions is developed to reconstruct the topology of a network from only one-step data. We consider a general network model of coupled agents, in which the phase transformation of each node is determined by its neighbors. From the phase transformation information from one step to the next, the connections of the tail vertices are reconstructed firstly by the matching positions. Removing the already reconstructed vertices, and repeatedly reconstructing the connections of tail vertices, the topology of the entire network is reconstructed. For sparse scale-free networks with more than ten thousands nodes, we almost obtain the actual topology using only the one-step data in simulations.

Bayesian reconstruction of projection reconstruction NMR (PR-NMR).

PubMed

Yoon, Ji Won

2014-11-01

Projection reconstruction nuclear magnetic resonance (PR-NMR) is a technique for generating multidimensional NMR spectra. A small number of projections from lower-dimensional NMR spectra are used to reconstruct the multidimensional NMR spectra. In our previous work, it was shown that multidimensional NMR spectra are efficiently reconstructed using peak-by-peak based reversible jump Markov chain Monte Carlo (RJMCMC) algorithm. We propose an extended and generalized RJMCMC algorithm replacing a simple linear model with a linear mixed model to reconstruct close NMR spectra into true spectra. This statistical method generates samples in a Bayesian scheme. Our proposed algorithm is tested on a set of six projections derived from the three-dimensional 700 MHz HNCO spectrum of a protein HasA. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Fast magnetic resonance imaging based on high degree total variation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Sujie; Lu, Liangliang; Zheng, Junbao; Jiang, Mingfeng

2018-04-01

In order to eliminating the artifacts and "staircase effect" of total variation in Compressive Sensing MRI, high degree total variation model is proposed for dynamic MRI reconstruction. the high degree total variation regularization term is used as a constraint to reconstruct the magnetic resonance image, and the iterative weighted MM algorithm is proposed to solve the convex optimization problem of the reconstructed MR image model, In addtion, one set of cardiac magnetic resonance data is used to verify the proposed algorithm for MRI. The results show that the high degree total variation method has a better reconstruction effect than the total variation and the total generalized variation, which can obtain higher reconstruction SNR and better structural similarity.

Water Levels and Selected Water-Quality Conditions in the Sparta-Memphis Aquifer (Middle Claiborne Aquifer) in Arkansas, Spring-Summer 2007

USGS Publications Warehouse

Schrader, T.P.

2009-01-01

The U.S. Geological Survey in cooperation with the Arkansas Natural Resources Commission and the Arkansas Geological Survey has monitored water levels in the Sparta Sand of Claiborne Group and Memphis Sand of Claiborne Group (herein referred to as the Sparta Sand and the Memphis Sand, respectively), since the 1920s. Groundwater withdrawals have increased while water levels have declined since monitoring was initiated. Herein, aquifers in the Sparta Sand and Memphis Sand will be referred to as the Sparta-Memphis aquifer throughout Arkansas. During the spring of 2007, 309 water levels were measured in wells completed in the Sparta-Memphis aquifer. During the summer of 2007, 129 water-quality samples were collected and measured for temperature and specific conductance and 102 were collected and analyzed for chloride from wells completed in the Sparta-Memphis aquifer. Water-level measurements collected in wells screened in the Sparta-Memphis aquifer were used to produce a regional potentiometric-surface map. The regional direction of groundwater flow in the Sparta-Memphis aquifer is generally to the south-southeast in the northern half of Arkansas and to the east and south in the southern half of Arkansas, away from the outcrop area except where affected by large ground-water withdrawals. The highest water-level altitude measured in the Sparta-Memphis aquifer was 326 feet above National Geodetic Vertical Datum of 1929, located in Grant County in the outcrop at the western boundary of the study area; the lowest water-level altitude was 161 feet below National Geodetic Vertical Datum of 1929 in Union County near the southern boundary of the study area. Eight cones of depression (generally represented by closed contours) are located in the following counties: Bradley, Drew, and Ashley; Calhoun; Cleveland; Columbia; Crittenden; Arkansas, Jefferson, and Lincoln; Cross and Poinsett; and Union. Two large depressions are shown on the 2007 potentiometric-surface map, centered in Jefferson and Union Counties, as a result of large withdrawals for industrial and public supplies. The depression centered in Jefferson County deepened and expanded in recent years into Arkansas and Prairie Counties as a result of large withdrawals for irrigation and public supply. The area enclosed within the 40-foot contour has expanded on the 2007 potentiometric-surface map when compared with the 2005 potentiometric-surface map. In 2003, the depression in Union County was elongated east and west and beginning to coalesce with the depression in Columbia County. The deepest measurement during 2007 in the center of the depression in Union County has risen 38 feet since 2003. The area enclosed by the deepest contour, 160 feet below National Geodetic Vertical Datum of 1929, on the 2007 potentiometric-surface map is less than 10 percent of the area on the 2005 potentiometric-surface map. A broad depression in western Poinsett and Cross Counties was first shown in the 1995 potentiometric-surface map caused by withdrawals for irrigation extending north to the Poinsett-Craighead County line, and south into Cross County. A water-level difference map was constructed using the difference between water-level measurements made during 2003 and 2007 from 283 wells. The difference in water level between 2003 and 2007 ranged from -49.8 to 60.0 feet. Areas with a general rise in water levels are shown in northern Arkansas, Columbia, southern Jefferson, and most of Union Counties. In the area around west-central Union County, water levels rose as much as 60.0 feet with water levels in 15 wells rising 20 feet or more, which is an average annual rise of 5 feet or more. Water levels generally declined throughout most of the rest of Arkansas. Hydrographs from 157 wells were constructed with a minimum of 25 years of water-level measurements. During the period 1983-2007, the county mean annual water level rose in Calhoun, Columbia, Hot Spring, and Lafayette Counties. Mean an

A phylogenetic Kalman filter for ancestral trait reconstruction using molecular data.

PubMed

Lartillot, Nicolas

2014-02-15

Correlation between life history or ecological traits and genomic features such as nucleotide or amino acid composition can be used for reconstructing the evolutionary history of the traits of interest along phylogenies. Thus far, however, such ancestral reconstructions have been done using simple linear regression approaches that do not account for phylogenetic inertia. These reconstructions could instead be seen as a genuine comparative regression problem, such as formalized by classical generalized least-square comparative methods, in which the trait of interest and the molecular predictor are represented as correlated Brownian characters coevolving along the phylogeny. Here, a Bayesian sampler is introduced, representing an alternative and more efficient algorithmic solution to this comparative regression problem, compared with currently existing generalized least-square approaches. Technically, ancestral trait reconstruction based on a molecular predictor is shown to be formally equivalent to a phylogenetic Kalman filter problem, for which backward and forward recursions are developed and implemented in the context of a Markov chain Monte Carlo sampler. The comparative regression method results in more accurate reconstructions and a more faithful representation of uncertainty, compared with simple linear regression. Application to the reconstruction of the evolution of optimal growth temperature in Archaea, using GC composition in ribosomal RNA stems and amino acid composition of a sample of protein-coding genes, confirms previous findings, in particular, pointing to a hyperthermophilic ancestor for the kingdom. The program is freely available at www.phylobayes.org.

Using Spherical-Harmonics Expansions for Optics Surface Reconstruction from Gradients.

PubMed

Solano-Altamirano, Juan Manuel; Vázquez-Otero, Alejandro; Khikhlukha, Danila; Dormido, Raquel; Duro, Natividad

2017-11-30

In this paper, we propose a new algorithm to reconstruct optics surfaces (aka wavefronts) from gradients, defined on a circular domain, by means of the Spherical Harmonics. The experimental results indicate that this algorithm renders the same accuracy, compared to the reconstruction based on classical Zernike polynomials, using a smaller number of polynomial terms, which potentially speeds up the wavefront reconstruction. Additionally, we provide an open-source C++ library, released under the terms of the GNU General Public License version 2 (GPLv2), wherein several polynomial sets are coded. Therefore, this library constitutes a robust software alternative for wavefront reconstruction in a high energy laser field, optical surface reconstruction, and, more generally, in surface reconstruction from gradients. The library is a candidate for being integrated in control systems for optical devices, or similarly to be used in ad hoc simulations. Moreover, it has been developed with flexibility in mind, and, as such, the implementation includes the following features: (i) a mock-up generator of various incident wavefronts, intended to simulate the wavefronts commonly encountered in the field of high-energy lasers production; (ii) runtime selection of the library in charge of performing the algebraic computations; (iii) a profiling mechanism to measure and compare the performance of different steps of the algorithms and/or third-party linear algebra libraries. Finally, the library can be easily extended to include additional dependencies, such as porting the algebraic operations to specific architectures, in order to exploit hardware acceleration features.

Using Spherical-Harmonics Expansions for Optics Surface Reconstruction from Gradients

PubMed Central

Solano-Altamirano, Juan Manuel; Khikhlukha, Danila

2017-01-01

In this paper, we propose a new algorithm to reconstruct optics surfaces (aka wavefronts) from gradients, defined on a circular domain, by means of the Spherical Harmonics. The experimental results indicate that this algorithm renders the same accuracy, compared to the reconstruction based on classical Zernike polynomials, using a smaller number of polynomial terms, which potentially speeds up the wavefront reconstruction. Additionally, we provide an open-source C++ library, released under the terms of the GNU General Public License version 2 (GPLv2), wherein several polynomial sets are coded. Therefore, this library constitutes a robust software alternative for wavefront reconstruction in a high energy laser field, optical surface reconstruction, and, more generally, in surface reconstruction from gradients. The library is a candidate for being integrated in control systems for optical devices, or similarly to be used in ad hoc simulations. Moreover, it has been developed with flexibility in mind, and, as such, the implementation includes the following features: (i) a mock-up generator of various incident wavefronts, intended to simulate the wavefronts commonly encountered in the field of high-energy lasers production; (ii) runtime selection of the library in charge of performing the algebraic computations; (iii) a profiling mechanism to measure and compare the performance of different steps of the algorithms and/or third-party linear algebra libraries. Finally, the library can be easily extended to include additional dependencies, such as porting the algebraic operations to specific architectures, in order to exploit hardware acceleration features. PMID:29189722

Prospective, Double-Blind Evaluation of Umbilicoplasty Techniques Using Conventional and Crowdsourcing Methods.

PubMed

van Veldhuisen, Charlotte L; Kamali, Parisa; Wu, Winona; Becherer, Babette E; Sinno, Hani H; Ashraf, Azra A; Ibrahim, Ahmed M S; Tobias, Adam; Lee, Bernard T; Lin, Samuel J

2017-12-01

Umbilical reconstruction is an important component of deep inferior epigastric perforator (DIEP) flap breast reconstruction. This study evaluated the aesthetics of three different umbilical reconstruction techniques during DIEP flap breast reconstruction. From January to April of 2013, a total of 29 consecutive patients undergoing DIEP flap breast reconstruction were randomized intraoperatively to receive one of three umbilicoplasty types: a diamond, an oval, or an inverted V incision. Independent plastic surgeons and members of the general public, identified using an online "crowdsourcing" platform, evaluated aesthetic outcomes in a blinded fashion. Reviewers were shown postoperative photographs of the umbilicus of all patients and a four-point Likert scale was used to rate the new umbilicus on the size, scar formation, shape, localization, and overall appearance. Results for the focus group of independent plastic surgeons and 377 members of the public were retrieved (n = 391). A total of 10 patients (34.5 percent) were randomized into having the diamond incision, 10 (34.5 percent) had the oval incision, and nine (31.0 percent) had the inverted V incision. Patients were well matched in terms of overall characteristics. The general public demonstrated a significant preference for the oval incision in all five parameters. There was no preference identified among surgeons. This study provides evidence that a sample of the U.S. general public prefers the aesthetics of the oval umbilicoplasty incision, which contrasted with the lack of preference identified within this focus group of plastic surgeons. Therapeutic, II.

Statistical iterative reconstruction for streak artefact reduction when using multidetector CT to image the dento-alveolar structures.

PubMed

Dong, J; Hayakawa, Y; Kober, C

2014-01-01

When metallic prosthetic appliances and dental fillings exist in the oral cavity, the appearance of metal-induced streak artefacts is not avoidable in CT images. The aim of this study was to develop a method for artefact reduction using the statistical reconstruction on multidetector row CT images. Adjacent CT images often depict similar anatomical structures. Therefore, reconstructed images with weak artefacts were attempted using projection data of an artefact-free image in a neighbouring thin slice. Images with moderate and strong artefacts were continuously processed in sequence by successive iterative restoration where the projection data was generated from the adjacent reconstructed slice. First, the basic maximum likelihood-expectation maximization algorithm was applied. Next, the ordered subset-expectation maximization algorithm was examined. Alternatively, a small region of interest setting was designated. Finally, the general purpose graphic processing unit machine was applied in both situations. The algorithms reduced the metal-induced streak artefacts on multidetector row CT images when the sequential processing method was applied. The ordered subset-expectation maximization and small region of interest reduced the processing duration without apparent detriments. A general-purpose graphic processing unit realized the high performance. A statistical reconstruction method was applied for the streak artefact reduction. The alternative algorithms applied were effective. Both software and hardware tools, such as ordered subset-expectation maximization, small region of interest and general-purpose graphic processing unit achieved fast artefact correction.

Bayesian image reconstruction for improving detection performance of muon tomography.

PubMed

Wang, Guobao; Schultz, Larry J; Qi, Jinyi

2009-05-01

Muon tomography is a novel technology that is being developed for detecting high-Z materials in vehicles or cargo containers. Maximum likelihood methods have been developed for reconstructing the scattering density image from muon measurements. However, the instability of maximum likelihood estimation often results in noisy images and low detectability of high-Z targets. In this paper, we propose using regularization to improve the image quality of muon tomography. We formulate the muon reconstruction problem in a Bayesian framework by introducing a prior distribution on scattering density images. An iterative shrinkage algorithm is derived to maximize the log posterior distribution. At each iteration, the algorithm obtains the maximum a posteriori update by shrinking an unregularized maximum likelihood update. Inverse quadratic shrinkage functions are derived for generalized Laplacian priors and inverse cubic shrinkage functions are derived for generalized Gaussian priors. Receiver operating characteristic studies using simulated data demonstrate that the Bayesian reconstruction can greatly improve the detection performance of muon tomography.

Computer-assisted innovations in craniofacial surgery.

PubMed

Rudman, Kelli; Hoekzema, Craig; Rhee, John

2011-08-01

Reconstructive surgery for complex craniofacial defects challenges even the most experienced surgeons. Preoperative reconstructive planning requires consideration of both functional and aesthetic properties of the mandible, orbit, and midface. Technological innovations allow for computer-assisted preoperative planning, computer-aided manufacturing of patient-specific implants (PSIs), and computer-assisted intraoperative navigation. Although many case reports discuss computer-assisted preoperative planning and creation of custom implants, a general overview of computer-assisted innovations is not readily available. This article reviews innovations in computer-assisted reconstructive surgery including anatomic considerations when using PSIs, technologies available for preoperative planning, work flow and process of obtaining a PSI, and implant materials available for PSIs. A case example follows illustrating the use of this technology in the reconstruction of an orbital-frontal-temporal defect with a PSI. Computer-assisted reconstruction of complex craniofacial defects provides the reconstructive surgeon with innovative options for challenging reconstructive cases. As technology advances, applications of computer-assisted reconstruction will continue to expand. © Thieme Medical Publishers.

GENERAL CONSIDERATIONS OF DOSE-EFFECT AND DOSE-RESPONSE RELATIONSHIPS

EPA Science Inventory

ABSTRACT In 2003, the International Union of Pure and Applied chemistry (IUPAC) issued a glossary of terms that included the defi nition of dose-effect and doseresponse relationships (Nordberg et al., 2004). Dose effect relationship is defined as an association between dose and...

76 FR 44866 - Credit Union Service Organizations

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2011-07-27

... by a licensed certified public accountant. These requirements will ensure NCUA will be able to... public accountant, and submit a financial report directly to NCUA. According to NCUA records, of the 2... licensed certified public accountant in accordance with generally accepted auditing standards. A wholly...

29 CFR 452.49 - Other union rules.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... Relating to Labor OFFICE OF LABOR-MANAGEMENT STANDARDS, DEPARTMENT OF LABOR LABOR-MANAGEMENT STANDARDS GENERAL STATEMENT CONCERNING THE ELECTION PROVISIONS OF THE LABOR-MANAGEMENT REPORTING AND DISCLOSURE ACT.... Such rules are intended to encourage as many members as possible to seek positions of leadership in the...

UFOs, NGOs, or IGOs: Using International Documents for General Reference.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Shreve, Catherine

1997-01-01

Discusses accessing and using documents from international (intergovernmental) organizations. Profiles the United Nations, the European Union and other Intergovernmental Organizations (IGOs). Discusses the librarian as "Web detective," notes questions to focus on, and presents examples to demonstrate navigation of IGO sites. Lists basic…

29 CFR 452.92 - Unemployed members.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

...-time basis in the industry served by the union, provided, of course, that such members are paying dues. ... Relating to Labor OFFICE OF LABOR-MANAGEMENT STANDARDS, DEPARTMENT OF LABOR LABOR-MANAGEMENT STANDARDS GENERAL STATEMENT CONCERNING THE ELECTION PROVISIONS OF THE LABOR-MANAGEMENT REPORTING AND DISCLOSURE ACT...

Recent Soviet Vocationalisation Policies.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

O'Dell, Felicity

The Soviet Union is attempting to deal with the sometimes conflicting problems of efficient vocationalization and provision of equal opportunity. From the first class of general school, Soviet children have several "labor" lessons a week. Main components of these lessons are practical skills, socialization for work, and vocational…

12 CFR 708b.103 - Preparation of merger plan.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-01-01

... includes: (1) Current financial statements for both credit unions; (2) Current delinquent loan summaries and analyses of the adequacy of the Allowance for Loan and Lease Losses account; (3) Consolidated financial statements, including an assessment of the generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP) net...

12 CFR 708b.103 - Preparation of merger plan.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... includes: (1) Current financial statements for both credit unions; (2) Current delinquent loan summaries and analyses of the adequacy of the Allowance for Loan and Lease Losses account; (3) Consolidated financial statements, including an assessment of the generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP) net...

Plate-only open door laminoplasty maintains stable spinal canal expansion with high rates of hinge union and no plate failures.

PubMed

Rhee, John M; Register, Bradley; Hamasaki, Takahiko; Franklin, Betty

2011-01-01

Prospective clinical series. To evaluate the ability of plate-only laminoplasty to achieve stable laminar arch reconstruction and to determine the rate and time course with which bony healing occurs in such constructs. Reconstruction of a stable laminar arch with sufficient room for the decompressed spinal cord is a desired goal when performing cervical laminoplasty for myelopathy. Traditional forms of laminoplasty fixation, such as sutures, bone struts, and ceramic spacers, may be associated with complications including loss of fixation, dislodgement with neurologic compromise, and premature laminoplasty closure. Plates, in contrast, provide more rigid fixation. Plate-only laminoplasty is gaining popularity as a method of laminoplasty fixation, but there is little data on its effectiveness. Fifty-four patients who underwent open door laminoplasty for cervical myelopathy and had available postoperative computed tomography (CT) scans formed the basis of this study. In all cases, a 4-mm round burr was used to create the hinge at the junction of the lateral mass and lamina by completely removing the dorsal cortex and thinning the ventral cortex until a greenstick deformation of the hinge could be produced. Laminoplasty plates were used as the sole method of fixation. No supplemental bone graft struts were used on the plated side, and the hinge side was not bone grafted. Axial CT scans obtained at 3, 6, and 12 months postoperatively were assessed for plate complications and bony healing of the hinge. No plate failures, dislodgements, or premature closures occurred in any of the levels at any time postoperatively. Computed tomography scan review demonstrated that 55% of levels were healed at 3 months, 77% at 6 months, and 93% at 12 months. At each timepoint, C6 and C7 had the highest hinge healing rates. Laminar screw backout was seen in 5/217 (2.3%) of levels, but was not associated with plate dislodgement, laminoplasty closure, or neurologic consequences, and did not occur in any case in which 2 laminar screws had been placed. Plate-only laminoplasty provided stable reconstruction of an expanded laminar arch with no failures, dislodgements, adverse neurologic consequences, or premature closures in 217 levels. Ninety-three percent of hinges demonstrated radiographic union at 12 months, and even those that did not heal by CT scan criteria maintained patent expansion of the spinal canal without adverse neurologic consequences. Supplemental bone graft does not appear necessary when plated laminoplasty is performed.

Treatment of osteosarcoma around the knee in skeletally immature patients

PubMed Central

Yao, Weitao; Cai, Qiqing; Wang, Jiaqiang; Gao, Songtao

2017-01-01

Limb sparing surgery in growing young patients with malignant tumors is difficult as invasion of the physis by the tumor or surgical resection through the metaphysis may cause significant limb discrepancy following surgery. At present, hinged tumor prosthesis or biological reconstructions are the main methods following tumor resection in these patients. The aim of the present study was to assess different procedures for the treatment of osteosarcoma around knee joints in immature patients. A retrospective study of 56 patients (<15 years old, open physis) who had been treated for osteosarcoma around the knee joint between January 2007 and December 2015 was performed. Clinical data collected included patient demographics (age at diagnosis, sex and date of diagnosis), tumor characteristics [location, Enneking stage and subtype on magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)], treatment (response to neoadjuvant chemotherapy and type of primary surgery) and clinical outcomes (limb function, discrepancy and overall survival). The median age at the time of diagnosis was 12.14 years (range, 3–15 years). There were 32 male patients (57.1%). A total of 41 (82%) tumors were located at the distal femur, and 15 (18%) at the proximal tibia. A total of 49 (87.5%) patients were diagnosed with stage IIB tumors, and 7 (12.5%) had stage III, according to the Enneking stage classification. Different surgical methods, including amputation, rotation-plasty, endoprosthesis and biological instructions (e.g., allograft) were performed according to MRI type classification. During follow-up, 21 patients (37.5%) succumbed to disease. The Musculoskeletal Tumor Society score ranged from excellent to fair functional result. Recurrence (2 cases, 16.67%) and infection (2, cases, 16.67%) were the main complications following endoprosthesis replacement, while delayed union (12 cases, 57.14%) and fracture (3 cases, 14.29%) were the main causes for biological reconstructions. Limb-length discrepancy ranged from 0–10 cm in limb-saving surgery. The overall survival rate was 57.66% with different cohorts in Enneking stages IIB and III, with or without involvement of the physis and different cycles of chemotherapy. Results of the present study indicated that different limb saving surgeries, including epiphysis/physis preservation with biological construction in patients with MRI types I to III and endoprosthetic/osteoarticular reconstruction in patients with MRI types IV and V, are useful in the management of osteosarcoma in growing young patients with proper surgery indications, and knee joint function was maintained with acceptable complications including limb discrepancy, delayed union, infection, recurrence and fracture. PMID:29113159

Muon reconstruction in the Daya Bay water pools

DOE PAGES

Hackenburg, R. W.

2017-08-12

Muon reconstruction in the Daya Bay water pools would serve to verify the simulated muon fluxes and offer the possibility of studying cosmic muons in general. This reconstruction is, however, complicated by many optical obstacles and the small coverage of photomultiplier tubes (PMTs) as compared to other large water Cherenkov detectors. The PMTs’ timing information is useful only in the case of direct, unreflected Cherenkov light. This requires PMTs to be added and removed as an hypothesized muon trajectory is iteratively improved, to account for the changing effects of obstacles and direction of light. Therefore, muon reconstruction in the Dayamore » Bay water pools does not lend itself to a general fitting procedure employing smoothly varying functions with continuous derivatives. Here, we describe an algorithm which overcomes these complications. It employs the method of Least Mean Squares to determine an hypothesized trajectory from the PMTs’ charge-weighted positions. This initially hypothesized trajectory is then iteratively refined using the PMTs’ timing information. Reconstructions with simulated data reproduce the simulated trajectory to within about 5° in direction and about 45 cm in position at the pool surface, with a bias that tends to pull tracks away from the vertical by about 3°.« less

BUMPER: the Bayesian User-friendly Model for Palaeo-Environmental Reconstruction

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Holden, Phil; Birks, John; Brooks, Steve; Bush, Mark; Hwang, Grace; Matthews-Bird, Frazer; Valencia, Bryan; van Woesik, Robert

2017-04-01

We describe the Bayesian User-friendly Model for Palaeo-Environmental Reconstruction (BUMPER), a Bayesian transfer function for inferring past climate and other environmental variables from microfossil assemblages. The principal motivation for a Bayesian approach is that the palaeoenvironment is treated probabilistically, and can be updated as additional data become available. Bayesian approaches therefore provide a reconstruction-specific quantification of the uncertainty in the data and in the model parameters. BUMPER is fully self-calibrating, straightforward to apply, and computationally fast, requiring 2 seconds to build a 100-taxon model from a 100-site training-set on a standard personal computer. We apply the model's probabilistic framework to generate thousands of artificial training-sets under ideal assumptions. We then use these to demonstrate both the general applicability of the model and the sensitivity of reconstructions to the characteristics of the training-set, considering assemblage richness, taxon tolerances, and the number of training sites. We demonstrate general applicability to real data, considering three different organism types (chironomids, diatoms, pollen) and different reconstructed variables. In all of these applications an identically configured model is used, the only change being the input files that provide the training-set environment and taxon-count data.

Muon reconstruction in the Daya Bay water pools

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hackenburg, R. W.

2017-11-01

Muon reconstruction in the Daya Bay water pools would serve to verify the simulated muon fluxes and offer the possibility of studying cosmic muons in general. This reconstruction is, however, complicated by many optical obstacles and the small coverage of photomultiplier tubes (PMTs) as compared to other large water Cherenkov detectors. The PMTs' timing information is useful only in the case of direct, unreflected Cherenkov light. This requires PMTs to be added and removed as an hypothesized muon trajectory is iteratively improved, to account for the changing effects of obstacles and direction of light. Therefore, muon reconstruction in the Daya Bay water pools does not lend itself to a general fitting procedure employing smoothly varying functions with continuous derivatives. Here, an algorithm is described which overcomes these complications. It employs the method of Least Mean Squares to determine an hypothesized trajectory from the PMTs' charge-weighted positions. This initially hypothesized trajectory is then iteratively refined using the PMTs' timing information. Reconstructions with simulated data reproduce the simulated trajectory to within about 5°in direction and about 45 cm in position at the pool surface, with a bias that tends to pull tracks away from the vertical by about 3°.

Notice of Nominees for 2004 Election of Officers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

The nominees listed below constitute the slate approved by the AGU Council for the upcoming election of officers for 2004-2006. Additional nominations may be made by membership petition until 15 August 2003. See details below. Additional nominations may be made by membership petition. Nominees must be either a Member or a Fellow of the Union. Each petition must be accompanied by a letter from the proposed nominee, agreeing to serve if elected. There are no age, nationality, residence, or other analogous restrictions on who may serve as an officer. Petitions should be sent to the General Secretary, American Geophysical Union, 2000 Florida Avenue N.W., Washington, DC 20009. They must be received no later than 15 August 2003.

General Catalogue of Variable Stars: Current Status and New Name-Lists

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Samus, N. N.; Kazarovets, E. V.; Kireeva, N. N.; Pastukhova, E. N.; Durlevich, O. V.

2010-12-01

A short history of variable-star catalogs is presented. After the second World War, the International Astronomical Union asked astronomers of the Soviet Union to become responsible for variable-star catalogs. Currently, the catalog is kept electronically and is a joint project of the Institute of Astronomy (Russian Academy of Sciences) and Sternberg Astronomical Institute (Moscow University). We review recent trends in the field of variable-star catalogs, discuss problems and new prospects related to modern large-scale automatic photometric sky surveys, outline the subject of discussions on the future of the variable-star catalogs in the profile commissions of the IAU, and call for suggestions from the astronomical community.

On the union of graded prime ideals

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Uregen, Rabia Nagehan; Tekir, Unsal; Hakan Oral, Kursat

2016-01-01

In this paper we investigate graded compactly packed rings, which is defined as; if any graded ideal I of R is contained in the union of a family of graded prime ideals of R, then I is actually contained in one of the graded prime ideals of the family. We give some characterizations of graded compactly packed rings. Further, we examine this property on h - Spec(R). We also define a generalization of graded compactly packed rings, the graded coprimely packed rings. We show that R is a graded compactly packed ring if and only if R is a graded coprimely packed ring whenever R be a graded integral domain and h - dim R = 1.

First AGU Board of Directors

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

McPhaden, Michael J.

2010-08-01

On 1 July 2010, the first AGU Board of Directors took office. The board is composed of the president, president-elect, immediate past president, general secretary, international secretary, development board chair, six members elected by the Union membership, vice chair of the AGU Council, and the executive director. Two additional members may be nominated by the AGU president and approved by the board. The creation of the board is a result of the new governance structure approved by the AGU membership in November 2009. The board is responsible for the business aspects of the Union, while an expanded AGU Council will focus on science issues. Council members will be introduced in a future issue of Eos.

Minimal-scan filtered backpropagation algorithms for diffraction tomography.

PubMed

Pan, X; Anastasio, M A

1999-12-01

The filtered backpropagation (FBPP) algorithm, originally developed by Devaney [Ultrason. Imaging 4, 336 (1982)], has been widely used for reconstructing images in diffraction tomography. It is generally known that the FBPP algorithm requires scattered data from a full angular range of 2 pi for exact reconstruction of a generally complex-valued object function. However, we reveal that one needs scattered data only over the angular range 0 < or = phi < or = 3 pi/2 for exact reconstruction of a generally complex-valued object function. Using this insight, we develop and analyze a family of minimal-scan filtered backpropagation (MS-FBPP) algorithms, which, unlike the FBPP algorithm, use scattered data acquired from view angles over the range 0 < or = phi < or = 3 pi/2. We show analytically that these MS-FBPP algorithms are mathematically identical to the FBPP algorithm. We also perform computer simulation studies for validation, demonstration, and comparison of these MS-FBPP algorithms. The numerical results in these simulation studies corroborate our theoretical assertions.

Advances in Statistical and Deterministic Modeling of Wind-Driven Seas

DTIC Science & Technology

2011-09-30

Zakharov. Scales of nonlinear relaxation and balance of wind- driven seas. Geophysical Research Abstracts Vol. 13, EGU2011-2042, 2011. EGU General ...Dyachenko A. “On canonical equation for water waves” at General Assembly 2011 of the European Geosciences Union in Vienna, Austria, 03 – 08 April...scattering and equilibrium ranges in wind- generated waves with application to spectrometry, J. Geoph. Res., 92, 49715029, 1987. [3] Hsiao S.V. and

Translations on Eastern Europe, Political, Sociological, and Military Affairs, Number 1474

DTIC Science & Technology

1977-11-16

Political Administration ( Kiril Kosev; NARODNA ARMIYA, 21 Oct 77) 30 CZECHOSLOVAKIA Belgrade Speech of Chief Czechoslovak Delegate (Dusan Rovensky...the loyal follower of G. Dimitrov , noted Leninist, leader of the party and the state, and hero of the Soviet Union and of the Bulgarian People’s...20 Colonel General Velko Palin, head of the Military Affairs Department of the BCP Central Committee, Colonel General Kiril Kosev, chief of the Main

Generalized Fourier slice theorem for cone-beam image reconstruction.

PubMed

Zhao, Shuang-Ren; Jiang, Dazong; Yang, Kevin; Yang, Kang

2015-01-01

The cone-beam reconstruction theory has been proposed by Kirillov in 1961, Tuy in 1983, Feldkamp in 1984, Smith in 1985, Pierre Grangeat in 1990. The Fourier slice theorem is proposed by Bracewell 1956, which leads to the Fourier image reconstruction method for parallel-beam geometry. The Fourier slice theorem is extended to fan-beam geometry by Zhao in 1993 and 1995. By combining the above mentioned cone-beam image reconstruction theory and the above mentioned Fourier slice theory of fan-beam geometry, the Fourier slice theorem in cone-beam geometry is proposed by Zhao 1995 in short conference publication. This article offers the details of the derivation and implementation of this Fourier slice theorem for cone-beam geometry. Especially the problem of the reconstruction from Fourier domain has been overcome, which is that the value of in the origin of Fourier space is 0/0. The 0/0 type of limit is proper handled. As examples, the implementation results for the single circle and two perpendicular circle source orbits are shown. In the cone-beam reconstruction if a interpolation process is considered, the number of the calculations for the generalized Fourier slice theorem algorithm is O(N^4), which is close to the filtered back-projection method, here N is the image size of 1-dimension. However the interpolation process can be avoid, in that case the number of the calculations is O(N5).

Joint reconstruction via coupled Bregman iterations with applications to PET-MR imaging

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rasch, Julian; Brinkmann, Eva-Maria; Burger, Martin

2018-01-01

Joint reconstruction has recently attracted a lot of attention, especially in the field of medical multi-modality imaging such as PET-MRI. Most of the developed methods rely on the comparison of image gradients, or more precisely their location, direction and magnitude, to make use of structural similarities between the images. A challenge and still an open issue for most of the methods is to handle images in entirely different scales, i.e. different magnitudes of gradients that cannot be dealt with by a global scaling of the data. We propose the use of generalized Bregman distances and infimal convolutions thereof with regard to the well-known total variation functional. The use of a total variation subgradient respectively the involved vector field rather than an image gradient naturally excludes the magnitudes of gradients, which in particular solves the scaling behavior. Additionally, the presented method features a weighting that allows to control the amount of interaction between channels. We give insights into the general behavior of the method, before we further tailor it to a particular application, namely PET-MRI joint reconstruction. To do so, we compute joint reconstruction results from blurry Poisson data for PET and undersampled Fourier data from MRI and show that we can gain a mutual benefit for both modalities. In particular, the results are superior to the respective separate reconstructions and other joint reconstruction methods.

Modeling the economic costs of disasters and recovery: analysis using a dynamic computable general equilibrium model

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Xie, W.; Li, N.; Wu, J.-D.; Hao, X.-L.

2014-04-01

Disaster damages have negative effects on the economy, whereas reconstruction investment has positive effects. The aim of this study is to model economic causes of disasters and recovery involving the positive effects of reconstruction activities. Computable general equilibrium (CGE) model is a promising approach because it can incorporate these two kinds of shocks into a unified framework and furthermore avoid the double-counting problem. In order to factor both shocks into the CGE model, direct loss is set as the amount of capital stock reduced on the supply side of the economy; a portion of investments restores the capital stock in an existing period; an investment-driven dynamic model is formulated according to available reconstruction data, and the rest of a given country's saving is set as an endogenous variable to balance the fixed investment. The 2008 Wenchuan Earthquake is selected as a case study to illustrate the model, and three scenarios are constructed: S0 (no disaster occurs), S1 (disaster occurs with reconstruction investment) and S2 (disaster occurs without reconstruction investment). S0 is taken as business as usual, and the differences between S1 and S0 and that between S2 and S0 can be interpreted as economic losses including reconstruction and excluding reconstruction, respectively. The study showed that output from S1 is found to be closer to real data than that from S2. Economic loss under S2 is roughly 1.5 times that under S1. The gap in the economic aggregate between S1 and S0 is reduced to 3% at the end of government-led reconstruction activity, a level that should take another four years to achieve under S2.

The Gallant Stand: An Analysis of the Union Army of the Border’s Use of Mission Command at the Battle of the Little Blue, 21 October 1864

DTIC Science & Technology

2016-06-10

1864 A thesis presented to the Faculty of the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College in partial fulfillment of the requirements for...ORGANIZATION NAME(S) AND ADDRESS(ES) U.S. Army Command and General Staff College ATTN: ATZL-SWD-GD Fort Leavenworth, KS 66027-2301 8. PERFORMING...the student author and do not necessarily represent the views of the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College or any other governmental agency

12 CFR 717.20 - Coverage and definitions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-01-01

...-existing business relationship. (i) In general. The term “pre-existing business relationship” means a... by this subpart. (ii) Examples of pre-existing business relationships. (A) If a consumer has a time... federal credit union has a pre-existing business relationship with the consumer and can use eligibility...

12 CFR 717.20 - Coverage and definitions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-01-01

...-existing business relationship. (i) In general. The term “pre-existing business relationship” means a... by this subpart. (ii) Examples of pre-existing business relationships. (A) If a consumer has a time... federal credit union has a pre-existing business relationship with the consumer and can use eligibility...

12 CFR 717.20 - Coverage and definitions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-01-01

...-existing business relationship. (i) In general. The term “pre-existing business relationship” means a... by this subpart. (ii) Examples of pre-existing business relationships. (A) If a consumer has a time... federal credit union has a pre-existing business relationship with the consumer and can use eligibility...

Send politicians a message at RCN congress.

PubMed

2017-05-09

With RCN congress being held this month and a general election soon after there may never be a better time for the college and other unions to lobby for what matters most to nurses, and for what opinion polls tell us the public want: good quality services.

Financial Services and General Government Appropriations Act, 2014

THOMAS, 113th Congress

Rep. Crenshaw, Ander [R-FL-4

2013-07-23

House - 07/23/2013 Placed on the Union Calendar, Calendar No. 125. (All Actions) Notes: For further action, see H.R.3547, which became Public Law 113-76 on 1/17/2014. Tracker: This bill has the status IntroducedHere are the steps for Status of Legislation:

Financial Services and General Government Appropriations Act, 2012

THOMAS, 112th Congress

Rep. Emerson, Jo Ann [R-MO-8

2011-07-07

House - 07/07/2011 Placed on the Union Calendar, Calendar No. 86. (All Actions) Notes: For further action, see H.R.2055, which became Public Law 112-74 on 12/23/2011. Tracker: This bill has the status IntroducedHere are the steps for Status of Legislation:

17. Photocopy of Photograph (From Bethlehem Shipbuilding Ltd., New York, ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

17. Photocopy of Photograph (From Bethlehem Shipbuilding Ltd., New York, New York, 1919) COMPOSITE PHOTOGRAPH SHOWING AN EXTERIOR AND INTERIOR VIEW OF THE MACHINE SHOP AND AN INSET OF THE GENERAL MANAGER - Union Iron Works Turbine Machine Shop, 2200 Webster Street, Alameda, Alameda County, CA

Culture Curriculum: French, Level II.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hall, Ruth Wellman

This teacher's guide to cultural instruction at level 2 integrates materials derived from several sources. The guide is based on: (1) suggestions from "French for Secondary Schools," New York State Education Department; (2) general information concerning the geography, products, industries, regions, cities of France, the French Union, and the city…

77 FR 36585 - Postal Rate Changes

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2012-06-19

... POSTAL REGULATORY COMMISSION [Docket No. CP2012-32; Order No. 1367] Postal Rate Changes AGENCY... Service notice of rate and changes affecting Inbound Air Parcel Post at Universal Postal Union (UPU) rates... notice, in accordance with 39 CFR 3015.5, announcing changes in rates not of general applicability for...

Handicapped Workers Provisions in Union-Management Agreements.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Schwartz, Benjamin

Methods and procedures provided by 1,614 collective bargaining agreements to accommodate handicapped workers in New York State are described. Handicapped veteran clauses are considered; also considered are the prevalence and content of handicapped worker clauses, including transfers provided for in general terms, transfers subject to seniority…

29 CFR 452.40 - Prior office holding.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... Regulations Relating to Labor OFFICE OF LABOR-MANAGEMENT STANDARDS, DEPARTMENT OF LABOR LABOR-MANAGEMENT STANDARDS GENERAL STATEMENT CONCERNING THE ELECTION PROVISIONS OF THE LABOR-MANAGEMENT REPORTING AND.... 26 26 Wirtz v. Hotel, Motel and Club Employees Union, Local 6, 391 U.S. 492 at 504. The Court stated...

29 CFR 452.40 - Prior office holding.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... Regulations Relating to Labor OFFICE OF LABOR-MANAGEMENT STANDARDS, DEPARTMENT OF LABOR LABOR-MANAGEMENT STANDARDS GENERAL STATEMENT CONCERNING THE ELECTION PROVISIONS OF THE LABOR-MANAGEMENT REPORTING AND.... 26 26 Wirtz v. Hotel, Motel and Club Employees Union, Local 6, 391 U.S. 492 at 504. The Court stated...

A neural network approach for image reconstruction in electron magnetic resonance tomography.

PubMed

Durairaj, D Christopher; Krishna, Murali C; Murugesan, Ramachandran

2007-10-01

An object-oriented, artificial neural network (ANN) based, application system for reconstruction of two-dimensional spatial images in electron magnetic resonance (EMR) tomography is presented. The standard back propagation algorithm is utilized to train a three-layer sigmoidal feed-forward, supervised, ANN to perform the image reconstruction. The network learns the relationship between the 'ideal' images that are reconstructed using filtered back projection (FBP) technique and the corresponding projection data (sinograms). The input layer of the network is provided with a training set that contains projection data from various phantoms as well as in vivo objects, acquired from an EMR imager. Twenty five different network configurations are investigated to test the ability of the generalization of the network. The trained ANN then reconstructs two-dimensional temporal spatial images that present the distribution of free radicals in biological systems. Image reconstruction by the trained neural network shows better time complexity than the conventional iterative reconstruction algorithms such as multiplicative algebraic reconstruction technique (MART). The network is further explored for image reconstruction from 'noisy' EMR data and the results show better performance than the FBP method. The network is also tested for its ability to reconstruct from limited-angle EMR data set.

Data consistency criterion for selecting parameters for k-space-based reconstruction in parallel imaging.

PubMed

Nana, Roger; Hu, Xiaoping

2010-01-01

k-space-based reconstruction in parallel imaging depends on the reconstruction kernel setting, including its support. An optimal choice of the kernel depends on the calibration data, coil geometry and signal-to-noise ratio, as well as the criterion used. In this work, data consistency, imposed by the shift invariance requirement of the kernel, is introduced as a goodness measure of k-space-based reconstruction in parallel imaging and demonstrated. Data consistency error (DCE) is calculated as the sum of squared difference between the acquired signals and their estimates obtained based on the interpolation of the estimated missing data. A resemblance between DCE and the mean square error in the reconstructed image was found, demonstrating DCE's potential as a metric for comparing or choosing reconstructions. When used for selecting the kernel support for generalized autocalibrating partially parallel acquisition (GRAPPA) reconstruction and the set of frames for calibration as well as the kernel support in temporal GRAPPA reconstruction, DCE led to improved images over existing methods. Data consistency error is efficient to evaluate, robust for selecting reconstruction parameters and suitable for characterizing and optimizing k-space-based reconstruction in parallel imaging.

Impact of reconstruction strategies on system performance measures : maximizing safety and mobility while minimizing life-cycle costs : final report, December 8, 2008.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2008-12-08

The objective of this research is to develop a general methodological framework for planning and : evaluating the effectiveness of highway reconstruction strategies on the systems performance : measures, in particular safety, mobility, and the tot...

The Role of the U.S. Army in Health System Reconstruction and Development During Counterinsurgency

DTIC Science & Technology

2012-06-08

freedom. — Amartya Sen Development as Freedom Military medical personnel involved in health system reconstruction and development in Iraq and...Afghanistan. New York: W.W. Norton and Company, 2009. Sen , Amartya . Development as Freedom. New York: Anchor Books, 2000. Special Inspector General for

Potentiometric surface and specific conductance of the Sparta and Memphis aquifers in eastern Arkansas, 1995

USGS Publications Warehouse

Stanton, Gregory P.

1997-01-01

The Sparta and Memphis aquifers in eastern and south-central Arkansas are a major source of water for industrial, public supply, and agricultural uses. An estimated 240 million gallons per day was withdrawn from the Sparta and Memphis aquifers in 1995, an increase of about 17 million gallons per day from 1990. During the spring and early summer of 1995, the water level in the Sparta and Memphis aquifers was measured in 145 wells, the specific conductance of 101 ground-water samples collected from those aquifers was measured. Maps of areal distribution of potentiometric surface and specific conductance generated from these data reveal spatial trends in these parameters across the eastern and south-central Arkansas study area. The altitude of the potentiometric surface ranged from about 206 feet below sea level in Union County to about 307 feet above sea level in Saline County. The potentiometric surface of the Sparta and Memphis aquifers contains cones of depression descending below sea level in the central and southern portions of the study area, and a potentiometric high along the western study area boundary. Major recharge areas exhibit potentiometric highs greater than 200 feet above sea level and specific conductance values less than 200 microsiemens per centimeter, and generally are located in the outcrop/subcrop areas on the southern one-third of the western boundary and the northern portion of the study area. The regional direction of ground-water flow is from the north and west to the south and east, away from the outcrop and subcrop and northern regions, except near areas affected by intense ground-water withdrawals; such areas are manifested by large cones of depression centered in Columbia, Jefferson, and Union Counties. The cones of depression in adjoining Columbia and Union Counties are coalescing at or near sea level. The lowest water level measured was about 206 feet below sea level in Union County. Increased specific conductance values were measured in the areas of the cones of depression in Columbia and Union Counties. The cones of depression centered in Jefferson County coincides with an elongate area where ground water in the aquifer has low specific conductance. This area extends eastward from the outcrop/subcrop region of recharge. This extension of ground water with low specific conductance possibly indicates increased ground-water movement to the east-southeast from the outcrop/subcrop area induced by ground- water withdrawals in Jefferson County. Specific conductance increases markedly to the northeast and gradually to the south of this area. Long-term hydrographs of eight wells in the study areas, during the period 1970-1995, reveal water-level declines ranging from less than 0.5 foot per year in Phillips County to more than 2.0 feet per year in Union County. Water-level declines of greater than 1.5 feet per year generally are associated with the cones of depression centered in Columbia, Jefferson, and Union Counties.

On the deep-mantle origin of the Deccan Traps

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Glišović, Petar; Forte, Alessandro M.

2017-02-01

The Deccan Traps in west-central India constitute one of Earth’s largest continental flood basalt provinces, whose eruption played a role in the Cretaceous-Paleogene extinction event. The unknown mantle structure under the Indian Ocean at the start of the Cenozoic presents a challenge for connecting the event to a deep mantle origin. We used a back-and-forth iterative method for time-reversed convection modeling, which incorporates tomography-based, present-day mantle heterogeneity to reconstruct mantle structure at the start of the Cenozoic. We show a very low-density, deep-seated upwelling that ascends beneath the Réunion hot spot at the time of the Deccan eruptions. We found a second active upwelling below the Comores hot spot that likely contributed to the region of partial melt feeding the massive eruption.

Generation of clinical grade human bone marrow stromal cells for use in bone regeneration

PubMed Central

Robey, Pamela G.; Kuznetsov, Sergei A.; Ren, Jiaqiang; Klein, Harvey G.; Sabatino, Marianna; Stroncek, David F.

2014-01-01

In current orthopaedic practice, there is a need to increase the ability to reconstruct large segments of bone lost due to trauma, resection of tumors and skeletal deformities, or when normal regenerative processes have failed such as in non-unions and avascular necrosis. Bone marrow stromal cells (BMSCs, also known as bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells), when used in conjunction with appropriate carriers, represent a means by which to achieve bone regeneration in such cases. While much has been done at the bench and in pre-clinical studies, moving towards clinical application requires the generation of clinical grade cells. What is described herein is an FDA-approved cell manufacturing procedure for the ex vivo expansion of high quality, biologically active human BMSCs. PMID:25064527

Simultaneous Middle Third Clavicle Fracture and Type 3 Acromioclavicular Joint Dislocation; A Case Report

PubMed Central

Solooki, Saeed; Azad, Ali

2014-01-01

Simultaneous middle third clavicle fracture and acromioclavicular joint dislocation is a rare combination injury, as a result of high-energy trauma. We report a patient with a middle third clavicle fracture and ipsilateral grade three-acromioclavicular joint dislocation, which is a rare combination. The patient wanted to get back to work as soon as possible, so the fracture was fixed with reconstruction plate after open reduction and plate contouring; and acromioclavicular joint dislocation was reduced and fixed with two full threaded cancellous screws. One screw was inserted through the plate to the coracoid process. Clinical and radiographic finding revealed complete union of clavicle fracture and anatomical reduction of acromioclavicular joint with pain free full joint range of motion one year after operation. PMID:25207318

Seasonal variation in night blindness incidence among Union soldiers in the US Civil War.

PubMed

Lanska, Douglas J

2014-09-09

During the US Civil War, medical officers typically attributed night blindness among soldiers to malingering. A dietary basis was not generally suspected or appreciated. Incident cases of night blindness, scurvy, and diarrheal diseases, as well as mean troop strength among Union troops, were abstracted by month and race from tabulations of the US Surgeon General for the period from July 1861 through June 1866. Monthly incidence rates and annual incidence rates are presented as time series by race. Night blindness incidence was seasonal. Seasonal patterns of night blindness incidence were similar for white and black soldiers, although the peak incidence rates were approximately 2-3 times higher in black soldiers. The seasonal effect for white Union soldiers increased progressively to 1864. The seasonal pattern for night blindness roughly parallels that for scurvy and for diarrheal diseases. The peak season for night blindness incidence was summer, and the next highest season was spring. The mode of monthly incidence rates for diarrheal diseases slightly anticipated that for night blindness and scurvy. In addition, there was greater relative variation in monthly incidence for night blindness and scurvy than for diarrheal diseases. Nutritional night blindness occurred in a seasonal pattern among soldiers forced to subsist on nutritionally inadequate diets. The seasonal pattern is consistent with seasonal variations in the availability of foodstuffs with high vitamin A or provitamin A content, superimposed on marginal vitamin A reserves, and possibly exacerbated by co-occurring seasonal patterns of diarrheal disease. © 2014 American Academy of Neurology.

Short and long-term quality of life after reconstruction of bladder exstrophy in infancy: preliminary results of the QUALEX (QUAlity of Life of bladder EXstrophy) study.

PubMed

Jochault-Ritz, Sandy; Mercier, Mariette; Aubert, Didier

2010-08-01

The aim of the study was to assess quality of life (QOL) of patients born with bladder exstrophy (BE) and reconstructed during early childhood in 7 French university hospitals (QUALEX study: QUAlity of Life of bladder EXstrophy). Patients from 6 to 42 years old answered self-administered Short-Form 36 (SF-36), VSP-A (Vécu et Santé Perçue de l'Adolescent), VSP-AE (Vécu et Santé Perçue de l'Enfant), AUQUIE (AUto-QUestionnaire Imagé de l'Enfant), and general questionnaires about functional and socioeconomic data. Dimension scores were compared between adults and adolescents using SF-36 and adolescents and children using VSP-AE. Scores were also compared to the general French population. Among the 134 eligible patients, 36 adults, 18 adolescents, and 17 children answered the questionnaire. There was no difference between responders and nonresponders in reconstruction criteria. Continence was achieved in 77% of adults, 65% of adolescents, and 12% of children. Adolescent QOL was globally superior to adults and children. Adult QOL was globally lower than the general population except on the physical dimension. Children's QOL was also globally lower than the general population except for relations with family and school work. Adolescents' scores on SF-36 were superior to the general population but lower on half of the dimensions with VSP-AE. Patients presenting with reconstructed BE have impaired QOL, and functional results seem to be the most likely predictive factor of health-related QOL score. Copyright 2010 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Precise 3D Track Reconstruction Algorithm for the ICARUS T600 Liquid Argon Time Projection Chamber Detector

DOE PAGES

Antonello, M.; Baibussinov, B.; Benetti, P.; ...

2013-01-15

Liquid Argon Time Projection Chamber (LAr TPC) detectors offer charged particle imaging capability with remarkable spatial resolution. Precise event reconstruction procedures are critical in order to fully exploit the potential of this technology. In this paper we present a new, general approach to 3D reconstruction for the LAr TPC with a practical application to the track reconstruction. The efficiency of the method is evaluated on a sample of simulated tracks. We present also the application of the method to the analysis of stopping particle tracks collected during the ICARUS T600 detector operation with the CNGS neutrino beam.

Method for image reconstruction of moving radionuclide source distribution

DOEpatents

Stolin, Alexander V.; McKisson, John E.; Lee, Seung Joon; Smith, Mark Frederick

2012-12-18

A method for image reconstruction of moving radionuclide distributions. Its particular embodiment is for single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) imaging of awake animals, though its techniques are general enough to be applied to other moving radionuclide distributions as well. The invention eliminates motion and blurring artifacts for image reconstructions of moving source distributions. This opens new avenues in the area of small animal brain imaging with radiotracers, which can now be performed without the perturbing influences of anesthesia or physical restraint on the biological system.

Detailed measured sections, cross sections, and paleogeographic reconstructions of the upper cretaceous and lower tertiary nonmarine interval, Wind River Basin, Wyoming: Chapter 10 in Petroleum systems and geologic assessment of oil and gas resources in the Wind River Basin Province, Wyoming

USGS Publications Warehouse

Johnson, Ronald C.

2007-01-01

Detailed measured sections and regional stratigraphic cross sections are used to reconstruct facies maps and interpret paleogeographic settings for the interval from the base of Upper Cretaceous Mesaverde Formation to top of lower member of the Paleocene Fort Union Formation in the Wind River Basin, Wyoming. The Mesaverde Formation spans the time during which the Upper Cretaceous seaway retreated eastward out of central Wyoming in Campanian time and the initial stages of the Lewis transgression in earliest Maastrichtian time. This retreat stalled for a considerable period of time during deposition of the lower part of the Mesaverde, creating a thick buildup of marginal marine sandstones and coaly coastal plain deposits across the western part of the basin. The Lewis sea transgressed into the northeast part of Wind River Basin, beginning in early Maastrichtian time during deposition of the Teapot Sandstone Member of the Mesaverde Formation. The Meeteetse Formation, which overlies the Teapot, was deposited in a poorly-drained coastal plain setting southwest of the Lewis seaway. The Lewis seaway, at maximum transgression, covered much of the northeast half of the Wind River Basin area but was clearly deflected around the present site of the Wind River Range, southwest of the basin, providing the first direct evidence of Laramide uplift on that range. Uplift of the Wind River Range continued during deposition of the overlying Maastrichtian Lance Formation. The Granite Mountains south of the basin also became a positive feature during this time. A rapidly subsiding trough during the Maastrichtian time formed near the presentday trough of the Wind River Basin in which more than 6,000 feet of Lance was deposited. The development of this trough appears to have begun before the adjacent Owl Creek Mountains to the north started to rise; however, a muddy facies in the upper part of Lance in the deep subsurface, just to the south, might be interpreted to indicate that the Cretaceous Cody Shale was being eroded off a rising Owl Creek Mountains in latest Cretaceous time. The Paleocene Fort Union Formation unconformably overlies older units but with only slight angular discordance around much of the margins of the Wind River Basin. Pre-Fort Union erosion was most pronounced toward the Wind River Range to the southwest, where the Fort Union ultimately overlies strata as old as the upper part of the Cretaceous Cody Shale. The unconformity appears to die out toward the basin center. Coal-forming mires developed throughout the western part of the basin near the beginning of the Paleocene. River systems entering the basin from the Wind River Range to the southwest and the Granite Mountains to the south produced areas of sandy fluvial deposition along mountain fronts. A major river system appears to have entered the basin from about the same spot along the Wind River Range throughout much of the Paleocene, probably because it became incised and could not migrate laterally. The muddy floodplain facies that developed along the deep basin trough during latest Cretaceous time, expanded during the early part of the Paleocene. Coal-forming mires that characterize part of the lower Fort Union Formation reached maximum extent near the beginning of the late Paleocene and just prior to the initial transgression of Lake Waltman. From the time of initial flooding, Lake Waltman expanded rapidly, drowning the coal-forming mires in the central part of the basin and spreading to near basin margins. Outcrop studies along the south margin of the basin document that once maximum transgression was reached, the lake was rapidly pushed basinward and replaced by fluvial environments.

Guidelines for Professional Training of Junior Medical Staff in the Context of European Experience

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sosnova, Myroslava

2016-01-01

The article deals with outlining guidelines for improving professional training of junior medical staff based on European experience. Consequently, guidelines and recommendations on enhancing the efficiency of medical education in general and junior medical specialists' professional training, in particular, published by European Union of Medical…

Teaching of Psychology in Countries with Advanced versus Developing Economies

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Pinquart, Martin; Bernardo, Allan B. I.

2014-01-01

We compare structures and contents of psychology programmes from countries with developing and advanced economies. Respondents from 49 countries completed a survey of the International Union of Psychological Science on psychology education and training. In general, there are more similarities than differences between countries with developing and…

[The fatal disease of Napoleon Bonaparte].

PubMed

Espinoza, R; González, C

1996-09-01

Napoleon Bonaparte, soldier, general and emperor, desired the European union. He abdicated twice and in 1814 was confined to Santa Helena island. From the biographic description of bis last exile, we have extracted a description of the disease that lead him to die. We postulate that he had a gastric lymphoma.

The Contribution of IUPAC to Polymer Science Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Chan, Chin Han; Fellows, Christopher M.; Hess, Michael; Hiorns, Roger; Hoven, Voravee P.; Russell, Gregory T.; dos Santos, Cla´udio G.; S?turcova´, Adriana; Theato, Patrick

2017-01-01

Polymer education relies on generally agreed terminology and nomenclature rules. The Polymer Division of the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC) generates and recommends such rules for naming processes and materials in polymer science. It is the goal of IUPAC that these recommendations be applied in polymer science curricula…

National Labor Administration and Democracy in Brazil, 1985-87.

DTIC Science & Technology

1987-07-01

Unica dos Trabalhadores (CUT), Confederago General de Trabalho (CGT), and Union Sindical Independiente (USI), for the position of organized labor’s...regime to that of a first-rate cabinet post in the Nova Republica. 8 1 Other external areas have also received new emphasis, especially the SES and the

4 CFR 28.11 - Filing a charge with the Office of General Counsel.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... OFFICE PERSONNEL APPEALS BOARD; PROCEDURES APPLICABLE TO CLAIMS CONCERNING EMPLOYMENT PRACTICES AT THE... or a labor organization has engaged or is engaging in an unfair labor practice. (The types of... Counsel, Personnel Appeals Board, GAO, Suite 580, Union Center Plaza II, 820 First Street, NE., Washington...

Employee Retention at ABC & Co. Northwest Arkansas. Research Findings.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hatcher, Timothy; And Others

A 7-month research project was conducted by graduate students at a garment manufacturing plant in Fayetteville, Arkansas, to gain information about high employee turnover. Information also was gathered about the employment situation in northwest Arkansas in general, union-labor relationships, and how other companies handled turnover. Data were…

Generalized System of Preferences: Background and Renewal Debate

DTIC Science & Technology

2006-09-26

Market . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19 Stakeholders’ Concerns...States, the European Union and 11 other industrialized countries — Australia, Belarus, Bulgaria, Canada, Japan, New Zealand, Norway, Switzerland , and...GSP is to provide certain goods originating in developing countries with preferential market access (usually in the form of lower tariff rates or duty

12 CFR 792.03 - How will I know which records to request?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... the convenience of possible users and does not constitute a determination that all of the items listed... cost. The indices are: (a) NCUA Publications List: Manuals relating to general and technical... Instructions, Bulletins, Letters to Credit Unions, and certain internal manuals. (c) Popular FOIA Index...

The New World of Campaign Finance

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Williams, Charles F.

2010-01-01

Federal law had long prohibited corporations and unions from using general treasury funds to make either direct contributions to candidates or independent expenditures that expressly advocate the election or defeat of a candidate. It didn't matter where the ads appeared--print, online, or TV. The rationale for these restrictions was plain:…

12 CFR 794.150 - Program accessibility: Existing facilities.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... HANDICAP IN PROGRAMS OR ACTIVITIES CONDUCTED BY THE NATIONAL CREDIT UNION ADMINISTRATION § 794.150 Program accessibility: Existing facilities. (a) General. The agency shall operate each program or activity so that the program or activity, when viewed in its entirety, is readily accessible to and usable by handicapped...

Employment Issues in Higher Education: A Legal Compendium.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sagan, Jean S., Ed.; Rebel, Thomas P., Ed.

This volume contains 32 articles and sample documents treating legal issues in higher education employment focusing on major issues arising in a non-unionized setting. The first of six sections contains seven articles on the employment relationship in general that touch on current legal trends in employee selection procedures, employment…

Laws and Court Cases Related to Field Trips.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

DuVall, Charles R.; Krepel, Wayne J.

1978-01-01

Briefly discusses the results of a survey of the superintendent of public instruction, office of the attorney general, the education association, the school boards association, and the teacher union in each state to identify state laws and court cases on, and to solicit comments about, teacher responsibility on field trips. (IRT)

Novel Catalytic Mechanisms For The Chemical Reduction Of Carbon Dioxide To Energy-Dense Liquids

DTIC Science & Technology

2016-12-14

spectroscopy and X-ray crystallography . Synchrotron radiation techniques such as EXAFS and XANES are being used to characterize the structure and...Chemistry and Catalysis using Soft X-rays at LCLS” 23rd Congress and General Assembly of the International Union of Crystallography , Montreal (2014). A

Collective Bargaining in the Public Schools: Issues, Tactics, and New Strategies.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lunenburg, Fred C.

Collective bargaining is the process of negotiating and administering a contract agreement between a union and the employing organization. Although the specific provisions of collective bargaining agreements vary from one school to another, the collective bargaining process, and negotiated contract generally, address the following issues:…

Teaching English in the Workplace.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Belfiore, Mary Ellen; Burnaby, Barbara

A guide to program planning and administration of instruction in EWP (English as a second language (ESL) in the workplace combined with varying degrees of general ESL/orientation information) is intended for management and union representatives, EWP coordinators, and ESL administrators as well as teachers. Its primary purposes are to bring…

Society News: Workshop helps new GJI authors; Free eBook for schools; EGU awards medal; AGU elects Fellow; Support your Society; New Fellows

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

2012-04-01

Early-career researchers and postgraduates are invited to attend an Author Workshop at the 2012 European Geosciences Union General Assembly in Vienna. The following were elected Fellows of the Society on 10 February 2012:

Preface: Subsurface, surface and atmospheric processes in cold regions hydrology

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

This special section presents papers from three sessions at the 24th General Assembly of the International Union of Geodesy and Geophysics (IUGG), held in Perugia, Italy, in July 2007: ‘Interactions between snow, vegetation and the atmosphere’, ‘Hydrology in mountain regions’ and ‘Climate-permafrost...

Workers' Education in Palestine

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Elayassa, Wajih

2013-01-01

Due to the political context and the restrictions placed on general freedoms and trade union activities, workers' education in Palestine remained informal and largely reliant on oral memory until the early 1990s. For decades, it was an integral part of political education. Workers' education only became a stand-alone field after the establishment…

75 FR 77570 - Airworthiness Directives; General Electric Company CF6 Series Turbofan Engines

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2010-12-13

... electronically. Mail: Docket Management Facility, U.S. Department of Transportation, 1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE...-2251. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Tomasz Rakowski, Aerospace Engineer, Engine Certification Office... signed the comment on behalf of an association, business, labor union, etc.). You may review the DOT's...

Reconstructive challenges in war wounds

PubMed Central

Bhandari, Prem Singh; Maurya, Sanjay; Mukherjee, Mrinal Kanti

2012-01-01

War wounds are devastating with extensive soft tissue and osseous destruction and heavy contamination. War casualties generally reach the reconstructive surgery centre after a delayed period due to additional injuries to the vital organs. This delay in their transfer to a tertiary care centre is responsible for progressive deterioration in wound conditions. In the prevailing circumstances, a majority of war wounds undergo delayed reconstruction, after a series of debridements. In the recent military conflicts, hydrosurgery jet debridement and negative pressure wound therapy have been successfully used in the preparation of war wounds. In war injuries, due to a heavy casualty load, a faster and reliable method of reconstruction is aimed at. Pedicle flaps in extremities provide rapid and reliable cover in extremity wounds. Large complex defects can be reconstructed using microvascular free flaps in a single stage. This article highlights the peculiarities and the challenges encountered in the reconstruction of these ghastly wounds. PMID:23162233

ADART: an adaptive algebraic reconstruction algorithm for discrete tomography.

PubMed

Maestre-Deusto, F Javier; Scavello, Giovanni; Pizarro, Joaquín; Galindo, Pedro L

2011-08-01

In this paper we suggest an algorithm based on the Discrete Algebraic Reconstruction Technique (DART) which is capable of computing high quality reconstructions from substantially fewer projections than required for conventional continuous tomography. Adaptive DART (ADART) goes a step further than DART on the reduction of the number of unknowns of the associated linear system achieving a significant reduction in the pixel error rate of reconstructed objects. The proposed methodology automatically adapts the border definition criterion at each iteration, resulting in a reduction of the number of pixels belonging to the border, and consequently of the number of unknowns in the general algebraic reconstruction linear system to be solved, being this reduction specially important at the final stage of the iterative process. Experimental results show that reconstruction errors are considerably reduced using ADART when compared to original DART, both in clean and noisy environments.

Environmental implications of the use of sulfidic back-bay sediments for dune reconstruction — Lessons learned post Hurricane Sandy

USGS Publications Warehouse

Plumlee, Geoffrey S.; Benzel, William M.; Hoefen, Todd M.; Hageman, Philip L.; Morman, Suzette A.; Reilly, Timothy J.; Adams, Monique; Berry, Cyrus J.; Fischer, Jeffrey; Fisher, Irene

2016-01-01

Some barrier-island dunes damaged or destroyed by Hurricane Sandy's storm surges in October 2012 have been reconstructed using sediments dredged from back bays. These sand-, clay-, and iron sulfide-rich sediments were used to make berm-like cores for the reconstructed dunes, which were then covered by beach sand. In November 2013, we sampled and analyzed partially weathered materials collected from the cores of reconstructed dunes. There are generally low levels of metal toxicants in the reconstructed dune materials. However oxidation of reactive iron sulfides by percolating rainwater produces acid-sulfate pore waters, which evaporate during dry periods to produce efflorescent gypsum and sodium jarosite salts. The results suggest use of sulfidic sediments in dune reconstruction has both drawbacks (e.g., potential to generate acid runoff from dune cores following rainfall, enhanced corrosion of steel bulwarks) and possible benefits (e.g., efflorescent salts may enhance structural integrity).

Reconstruction of Knee Defects Using Pedicled Gastrocnemius Muscle Flap with Split-Thickness Skin Grafting: A Single Surgeon's Experience with 21 Patients.

PubMed

Kilic, Ali; Denney, Brad; de la Torre, Jorge

2018-05-31

Generally, reconstruction of knee defects with exposed bone, joint, tendon, and/or hardware requires a vascularized muscle flap for coverage. Although there are several surgical options for a knee defect reconstruction, the pedicled gastrocnemius muscle still remains the workhorse flap. Although this flap is commonly used for knee defect reconstruction and the technique is described very well, there is an absence of information in the literature detailing the technique of harvesting and insetting of the gastrocnemius flap step by step with illustrations. The purpose of this article is to describe in detail the technique to reconstruct defects of the knee with pedicled gastrocnemius muscle flap as well as to present demographics and surgical results of 21 patients who had knee reconstruction with a pedicled gastrocnemius muscle flap and split-thickness skin grafting. Thieme Medical Publishers 333 Seventh Avenue, New York, NY 10001, USA.

Breast reconstruction following mastectomy: current status in Australia.

PubMed

Sandelin, Kerstin; King, Elizabeth; Redman, Sally

2003-09-01

Although breast reconstruction provides some advantages for women following mastectomy, few Australian breast cancer patients currently receive reconstruction. In Australia, the routine provision of breast reconstruction will require the development of specific health service delivery models. The present paper reports an analysis of the provision of breast reconstruction in eight sites in Australia. A semi-structured telephone interview was conducted with 10 surgeons offering breast reconstruction as part of their practice, including nine breast or general surgeons and one plastic surgeon. Surgeons reported offering breast reconstruction to all women facing mastectomy; the proportion of women deciding to have breast reconstruction varied between sites with up to 50% of women having a reconstruction at some sites. Most sites offered three types of reconstruction. Two pathways emerged: either the breast surgeon performed the breast surgery in a team with the plastic surgeon who undertook the breast reconstruction or the breast surgeon provided both the breast surgery and the reconstruction. Considerable waiting times for breast reconstruction were reported in the public sector particularly for delayed reconstruction. Surgeons reported receiving training in breast reconstruction from plastic surgeons or from a breast surgery team that performed reconstructions; a number had been trained overseas. No audits of breast reconstruction were being undertaken. Breast reconstruction can be offered on a routine basis in Australia in both the private and public sectors. Women may be more readily able to access breast reconstruction when it is provided by a breast surgeon alone, but the range of reconstruction options may be more limited. If access to breast reconstruction is to be increased, there will be a need to: (i) develop effective models for the rural sector taking account of the lack of plastic surgeons; (ii) address waiting times for reconstruction surgery in the public sector; (iii) review costs to women in the private sector; (iv) develop a better understanding of women's views and how best to communicate about breast reconstruction; and (v) improve training in breast reconstruction.

[Patient-reported outcome of their breast reconstruction after mastectomy].

PubMed

Robiolle, C; Quillet, A; Dagregorio, G; Huguier, V

2015-06-01

The overall care of patients with breast cancer is a major public health issue. Breast reconstruction is a part of it, and could be modulated by factors related to their personal life or surgical management. The aim of our study was to investigate a statistical link between these factors of variability, and overall satisfaction after breast reconstruction. We evaluated in a retrospective study patients' satisfaction in Plastic, Reconstructive and Aesthetic Surgery Department of the University Hospital, Poitiers, after breast reconstruction using different sources of variability: elements of life at the moment of reconstruction decision, reconstruction management and the feeling of involvement in decisions related to reconstruction. Satisfaction was quantified by modified BREAST-Q pre- and postoperative questionnaires ("reconstruction" module) complemented by an open question to address patients experience. From January 2005 to May 2011, 148 patients underwent surgery, 60.1% accepted to complete the survey (89 patients). Postoperative overall satisfaction was 89.1 out of 100. Satisfaction gradually decreased (P=0.022), postoperative overall satisfaction was non-significantly higher with autologous reconstruction, regardless of the variability factor studied. Secondary reconstruction with autologous reconstruction enhanced physical well-being (P<0.001). Patients expressed a high request for information about the different kinds of reconstruction, postoperative, as well as support groups. This study shows that patients are generally very satisfied, but do not explain the causes of dissatisfaction. It paves the way for development of satisfaction with breast reconstruction databases. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.

Types and Characteristics of Data for Geomagnetic Field Modeling

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Langel, R. A. (Editor); Baldwin, R. T. (Editor)

1992-01-01

Given here is material submitted at a symposium convened on Friday, August 23, 1991, at the General Assembly of the International Union of Geodesy and Geophysics (IUGG) held in Vienna, Austria. Models of the geomagnetic field are only as good as the data upon which they are based, and depend upon correct understanding of data characteristics such as accuracy, correlations, systematic errors, and general statistical properties. This symposium was intended to expose and illuminate these data characteristics.

Proximal Pole Scaphoid Nonunion Reconstruction With 1,2 Intercompartmental Supraretinacular Artery Vascularized Graft and Compression Screw Fixation.

PubMed

Morris, Mark S; Zhu, Andy F; Ozer, Kagan; Lawton, Jeffrey N

2018-02-06

To review the incidence of union of patients with proximal pole scaphoid fracture nonunions treated using a 1,2 intercompartmental supraretinacular artery (1,2 ICSRA) vascularized graft and a small compression screw. This is a retrospective case series of 12 patients. Calculations of the size of the proximal pole fragment relative to the total scaphoid were performed using posteroanterior view scaphoid radiographs with the wrist in ulnar deviation and flat on the cassette. Analyses were repeated 3 times per subject, and the average ratio of proximal pole fragment relative to the entire scaphoid was calculated. We reviewed medical records, radiographs, and computed tomography (CT) scans of these 12 patients. The CT scans that were performed after an average of 12 weeks were ultimately used to confirm union of the scaphoid fractures. One patient was unable to have a CT so was excluded from the final calculation. All 11 (100%) scaphoid fractures that were assessed by CT were found to be healed at the 12-week assessment point. The mean proximal pole fragment size was 18% (range, 7%-27%) of the entire scaphoid. The 1,2 ICSRA vascularized graft and compression screw was an effective treatment for patients with proximal pole scaphoid fractures. Therapeutic IV. Copyright © 2018 American Society for Surgery of the Hand. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Efficient Simultaneous Reconstruction of Time-Varying Images and Electrode Contact Impedances in Electrical Impedance Tomography.

PubMed

Boverman, Gregory; Isaacson, David; Newell, Jonathan C; Saulnier, Gary J; Kao, Tzu-Jen; Amm, Bruce C; Wang, Xin; Davenport, David M; Chong, David H; Sahni, Rakesh; Ashe, Jeffrey M

2017-04-01

In electrical impedance tomography (EIT), we apply patterns of currents on a set of electrodes at the external boundary of an object, measure the resulting potentials at the electrodes, and, given the aggregate dataset, reconstruct the complex conductivity and permittivity within the object. It is possible to maximize sensitivity to internal conductivity changes by simultaneously applying currents and measuring potentials on all electrodes but this approach also maximizes sensitivity to changes in impedance at the interface. We have, therefore, developed algorithms to assess contact impedance changes at the interface as well as to efficiently and simultaneously reconstruct internal conductivity/permittivity changes within the body. We use simple linear algebraic manipulations, the generalized singular value decomposition, and a dual-mesh finite-element-based framework to reconstruct images in real time. We are also able to efficiently compute the linearized reconstruction for a wide range of regularization parameters and to compute both the generalized cross-validation parameter as well as the L-curve, objective approaches to determining the optimal regularization parameter, in a similarly efficient manner. Results are shown using data from a normal subject and from a clinical intensive care unit patient, both acquired with the GE GENESIS prototype EIT system, demonstrating significantly reduced boundary artifacts due to electrode drift and motion artifact.

On simulated annealing phase transitions in phylogeny reconstruction.

PubMed

Strobl, Maximilian A R; Barker, Daniel

2016-08-01

Phylogeny reconstruction with global criteria is NP-complete or NP-hard, hence in general requires a heuristic search. We investigate the powerful, physically inspired, general-purpose heuristic simulated annealing, applied to phylogeny reconstruction. Simulated annealing mimics the physical process of annealing, where a liquid is gently cooled to form a crystal. During the search, periods of elevated specific heat occur, analogous to physical phase transitions. These simulated annealing phase transitions play a crucial role in the outcome of the search. Nevertheless, they have received comparably little attention, for phylogeny or other optimisation problems. We analyse simulated annealing phase transitions during searches for the optimal phylogenetic tree for 34 real-world multiple alignments. In the same way in which melting temperatures differ between materials, we observe distinct specific heat profiles for each input file. We propose this reflects differences in the search landscape and can serve as a measure for problem difficulty and for suitability of the algorithm's parameters. We discuss application in algorithmic optimisation and as a diagnostic to assess parameterisation before computationally costly, large phylogeny reconstructions are launched. Whilst the focus here lies on phylogeny reconstruction under maximum parsimony, it is plausible that our results are more widely applicable to optimisation procedures in science and industry. Copyright © 2016 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Zonal wavefront reconstruction in quadrilateral geometry for phase measuring deflectometry

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

Huang, Lei; Xue, Junpeng; Gao, Bo

2017-06-14

There are wide applications for zonal reconstruction methods in slope-based metrology due to its good capability of reconstructing the local details on surface profile. It was noticed in the literature that large reconstruction errors occur when using zonal reconstruction methods designed for rectangular geometry to process slopes in a quadrilateral geometry, which is a more general geometry with phase measuring deflectometry. In this paper, we present a new idea for the zonal methods for quadrilateral geometry. Instead of employing the intermediate slopes to set up height-slope equations, we consider the height increment as a more general connector to establish themore » height-slope relations for least-squares regression. The classical zonal methods and interpolation-assisted zonal methods are compared with our proposal. Results of both simulation and experiment demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed idea. In implementation, the modification on the classical zonal methods is addressed. Finally, the new methods preserve many good aspects of the classical ones, such as the ability to handle a large incomplete slope dataset in an arbitrary aperture, and the low computational complexity comparable with the classical zonal method. Of course, the accuracy of the new methods is much higher when integrating the slopes in quadrilateral geometry.« less

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

Silver, M.

The decision in Union Petroleum Corp. v. United States reaffirms the Federal judiciary's commitment to control water pollution under the Federal Water Pollution Control Act. Those in charge of oil terminals who have taken reasonable precautions to prevent vandalism and oil spills into navigable rivers will be reimbursed when vandals spill oil from tank cars parked at the terminal. Awarding Union the full $99,952.17 encourages other terminal operators to quickly clean up harmful discharges into the nation's waters. The court implicitly recognized that the general security practice in the industry is a reasonable standard of care. Though the standard toleratesmore » some danger of discharge of harmful substances, this level of industry risk remains unchanged by the decision of the Court of Claims. 12 references.« less

Undergraduate research as curriculum.

PubMed

Dolan, Erin L

2017-07-08

To date, national interests, policies, and calls for transformation of undergraduate education have been the main drivers of research integration into the undergraduate curriculum, briefly described here. The New Horizons in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology Education conference at the Weizmann Institute of Science (Israel) this fall presents an exciting opportunity to discuss integration of undergraduate research into the curriculum and other cutting-edge topics in biochemistry and molecular biology education from a cross-national perspective. I look forward to exploring prospects for international collaboration on research and development of course-based undergraduate research experiences and on STEM education in general. © 2017 by The International Union of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, 45(4):293-298, 2017. © 2017 The International Union of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology.

Medicare program; prohibition of midyear benefit enhancements for Medicare Advantage organizations. Final rule.

PubMed

2008-07-28

This final rule prohibits Medicare Advantage (MA) organizations, including organizations offering MA plans to employer and union group health plan sponsors, from making midyear changes to nonprescription drug benefits, premiums, and cost-sharing submitted in their approved bids for a given contract year. This final rule also clarifies that MA organizations offering certain kinds of plans restricted to employer and union group health plan sponsors and not open to general enrollment may continue to offer benefit enhancements as they do currently, through means other than midyear benefit enhancements (MYBEs). Programs of all-inclusive care for elderly (PACE) are not subject to the provisions of this final rule and may continue to offer enhanced benefits as specified in our guidance for PACE plans.

75 FR 17083 - Fiduciary Duties at Federal Credit Unions; Mergers and Conversions of Insured Credit Unions...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2010-04-05

... Credit Unions; Mergers and Conversions of Insured Credit Unions; Correction AGENCY: National Credit Union... Federal credit unions and mergers and conversions of insured credit unions. The proposed rule as published... Conversions of Insured Credit Unions) in the e-mail subject line.'' [[Page 17084

Internal fixation of complex fractures of the tarsal navicular with locking plates. A report of 10 cases.

PubMed

Cronier, P; Frin, J-M; Steiger, V; Bigorre, N; Talha, A

2013-06-01

Tarsal navicular fractures are rare and treatment of comminuted fractures is especially difficult. Since 2007, the authors have had access to 3D reconstruction from CT scan images and specific locking plates, and they decided to evaluate whether these elements improved management of these severe cases. Between 2007 and 2011, 10 comminuted tarsal navicular fractures were treated in a prospective study. All of the fractures were evaluated by 3D reconstruction from CT scan images, with suppression of the posterior tarsal bones. The surgical approach was chosen according to the type of lesion. Reduction was achieved with a mini-distractor when necessary, and stabilized by AO locking plate fixation (Synthes™). Patient follow-up included a clinical and radiological evaluation (Maryland Foot score, AOFAS score). Eight patients underwent postoperative CT scan. All patients were followed up after a mean 20.5 months. Union was obtained in all patients and arthrodesis was not necessary in any of them. The mean Maryland Foot score was 92.8/100, and the AOFAS score 90.6/100. One patient with an associated comminuted calcaneal fracture had minimal sequella from a compartment syndrome of the foot. The authors did not find any series in the literature that reported evaluating tarsal navicular fractures by 3D reconstruction from CT scan images. The images obtained after suppression of the posterior tarsal bones systematically showed a lateral plantar fragment attached to the plantar calcaneonavicular ligament, which is essential for stability, and which helped determine the reduction technique. Locking plate fixation of these fractures has never been reported. Comminuted fractures of the tarsal navicular were successfully treated with specific imaging techniques in particular 3D reconstructions of CT scan images to choose the surgical approach and the reduction technique. Locking plate fixation of the navicular seems to be a satisfactory solution for the treatment of these particularly difficult fractures. Level IV. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.

The challenge of pelvic discontinuity: cup-cage reconstruction does better than conventional cages in mid-term.

PubMed

Abolghasemian, M; Tangsaraporn, S; Drexler, M; Barbuto, R; Backstein, D; Safir, O; Kuzyk, P; Gross, A

2014-02-01

The use of ilioischial cage reconstruction for pelvic discontinuity has been replaced by the Trabecular Metal (Zimmer, Warsaw, Indiana) cup-cage technique in our institution, due to the unsatisfactory outcome of using a cage alone in this situation. We report the outcome of 26 pelvic discontinuities in 24 patients (20 women and four men, mean age 65 years (44 to 84)) treated by the cup-cage technique at a mean follow-up of 82 months (12 to 113) and compared them with a series of 19 pelvic discontinuities in 19 patients (18 women and one man, mean age 70 years (42 to 86)) treated with a cage at a mean follow-up of 69 months (1 to 170). The clinical and radiological outcomes as well as the survivorship of the groups were compared. In all, four of the cup-cage group (15%) and 13 (68%) of the cage group failed due to septic or aseptic loosening. The seven-year survivorship was 87.2% (95% confidence interval (CI) 71 to 103) for the cup-cage group and 49.9% (95% CI 15 to 84) for the cage-alone group (p = 0.009). There were four major complications in the cup-cage group and nine in the cage group. Radiological union of the discontinuity was found in all successful cases in the cup-cage group and three of the successful cage cases. Three hips in the cup-cage group developed early radiological migration of the components, which stabilised with a successful outcome. Cup-cage reconstruction is a reliable technique for treating pelvic discontinuity in mid-term follow-up and is preferred to ilioischial cage reconstruction. If the continuity of the bone graft at the discontinuity site is not disrupted, early migration of the components does not necessarily result in failure.

Delayed Expression of Circulating TGF-β1 and BMP-2 Levels in Human Nonunion Long Bone Fracture Healing.

PubMed

Hara, Yoshiaki; Ghazizadeh, Mohammad; Shimizu, Hajime; Matsumoto, Hisashi; Saito, Nobuyuki; Yagi, Takanori; Mashiko, Kazuki; Mashiko, Kunihiro; Kawai, Makoto; Yokota, Hiroyuki

2017-01-01

The healing process of bone fracture requires a well-controlled multistage and sequential order beginning immediately after the injury. However, complications leading to nonunion exist, creating serious problems and costs for patients. Transforming growth factor-beta 1 (TGF-β1) and bone morphogenic protein 2 (BMP-2) are two major growth factors involved in human bone fracture healing by promoting various stages of bone ossification. In this study, we aimed to determine the role of these factors during the fracture healing of human long bones and assess their impacts on nonunion condition. We performed a comprehensive analysis of plasma TGF-β1 and BMP-2 levels in blood samples from 10 patients with proved nonunion and 10 matched patients with normal union following a predetermined time schedule. The concentrations of TGF-β1 and BMP-2 were measured at each time point using a solid-phase ELISA. TGF-β1 and BMP-2 levels were detectable in all patients. For all patients, a maximal peak for TGF-β1 was found at 3-week. In normal union group, TGF-β1 showed a maximal peak at 2-week while nonunion group had a delayed maximal peak at 3-week. Plasma levels of BMP-2 for all patients and for normal union group reached a maximal peak at 1-week, but nonunion group showed a delayed maximal peak at 2-week. In general, plasma TGF-β1 or BMP-2 level was not significantly different between normal union and nonunion groups. The expression levels of TGF-β1 and BMP-2 appeared to be delayed in nonunion patients which could play an important role in developing an early marker of fracture union condition and facilitate improved patient's management.

Preparticipation medical evaluation in professional sport in the UK: theory or practice?

PubMed

Fuller, C W; Ojelade, E O; Taylor, A

2007-12-01

To determine the level of pre-employment, pre-season, and post-injury medical evaluation of players undertaken within UK professional team sports. A postal, whole population survey. Elite professional sports teams in England. Six groups comprising the following clubs: professional football (Premiership, 15 of 20; Championship, 22 of 24), rugby union (Premiership, 9 of 12; Division 1, 11 of 14), rugby league (Super League, 6 of 11) and cricket (County, 12 of 18). Number (percentage) of clubs recording players' medical history and undertaking medical examinations of players' cardiovascular, respiratory, neurological, and musculoskeletal systems at pre-employment, pre-season and post-injury. The overall response to the survey was 74%, with a range from 55% to 92% among groups. Almost 90% of football (Premiership and Championship) and rugby union (Premiership) clubs took a pre-employment history of players' general health, cardiovascular, respiratory, neurological, and musculoskeletal systems, but fewer than 50% of cricket and rugby union (Division 1) clubs recorded a history. The majority of football (Premiership and Championship) and rugby union (Premiership) clubs implemented both cardiovascular and musculoskeletal examinations of players before employment. Fewer than 25% of clubs in any of the groups implemented neurological examinations of players at pre-employment, although 100% of rugby union (Premiership) and rugby league clubs implemented neurological testing during pre-season. None of the sports implemented best practice guidelines for the preparticipation evaluation of players at all stages of their employment. Departures from best practice guidelines and differences in practices between clubs within the same sport leave club physicians vulnerable if their players sustain injuries or ill health conditions that could have been identified and avoided through the implementation of a preparticipation examination.

Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction. Quarterly Reports and Semiannual Report to the United States Congress

DTIC Science & Technology

2009-01-30

focus has been, and is, shifting from major reconstruction into helping with gover - nance, helping with capacity, helping with policy reform, and...extractive industries, including oil, gas, and minerals agriculture tourism In December, a U.S. Treasury and execution. The team met with the chief

A preliminary investigation of ROI-image reconstruction with the rebinned BPF algorithm

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bian, Junguo; Xia, Dan; Yu, Lifeng; Sidky, Emil Y.; Pan, Xiaochuan

2008-03-01

The back-projection filtration (BPF)algorithm is capable of reconstructing ROI images from truncated data acquired with a wide class of general trajectories. However, it has been observed that, similar to other algorithms for convergent beam geometries, the BPF algorithm involves a spatially varying weighting factor in the backprojection step. This weighting factor can not only increase the computation load, but also amplify the noise in reconstructed images The weighting factor can be eliminated by appropriately rebinning the measured cone-beam data into fan-parallel-beam data. Such an appropriate data rebinning not only removes the weighting factor, but also retain other favorable properties of the BPF algorithm. In this work, we conduct a preliminary study of the rebinned BPF algorithm and its noise property. Specifically, we consider an application in which the detector and source can move in several directions for achieving ROI data acquisition. The combined motion of the detector and source generally forms a complex trajectory. We investigate in this work image reconstruction within an ROI from data acquired in this kind of applications.

Development and Characterization of a Dither-Based Super-Resolution Reconstruction Method for Fiber Imaging Arrays

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Languirand, Eric Robert

Chemical imaging is an important tool for providing insight into function, role, and spatial distribution of analytes. This thesis describes the use of imaging fiber bundles (IFB) for super-resolution reconstruction using surface enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) showing improvement in resolution with arrayed bundles for the first time. Additionally this thesis describes characteristics of the IFB with regards to cross-talk as a function of aperture size. The first part of this thesis characterizes the IFB for both tapered and untapered bundles in terms of cross-talk. Cross-talk is defined as the amount of light leaking from a central fiber element in the imaging fiber bundle to surrounding fiber elements. To make this measurement ubiquitous for all imaging bundles, quantum dots were employed. Untapered and tapered IFB possess cross-talk of 2% or less, with fiber elements down to 32nm. The second part of this thesis employs a super resolution reconstruction algorithm using projection onto convex sets for resolution improvement. When using IFB arrays, the point spread function (PSF) of the array can be known accurately if the fiber elements over fill the pixel detector array. Therefore, the use of the known PSF compared to a general blurring kernel was evaluated. Relative increases in resolution of 12% and 2% at the 95% confidence level are found, when compared to a reference image, for the general blurring kernel and PSF, respectively. The third part of this thesis shows for the first time the use of SERS with a dithered IFB array coupled with super-resolution reconstruction. The resolution improvement across a step-edge is shown to be approximately 20% when compared to a reference image. This provides an additional means of increasing the resolution of fiber bundles beyond that of just tapering. Furthermore, this provides a new avenue for nanoscale imaging using these bundles. Lastly, synthetic data with varying degrees of signal-to-noise (S/N) were employed to explore the relationship S/N has with the reconstruction process. It is generally shown that increasing the number images used in the reconstruction process and increasing the S/N will improve the reconstruction providing larger increases in resolution.

What can the annual 10Be solar activity reconstructions tell us about historic space weather?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Barnard, Luke; McCracken, Ken G.; Owens, Mat J.; Lockwood, Mike

2018-04-01

Context: Cosmogenic isotopes provide useful estimates of past solar magnetic activity, constraining past space climate with reasonable uncertainty. Much less is known about past space weather conditions. Recent advances in the analysis of 10Be by McCracken & Beer (2015, Sol Phys 290: 305-3069) (MB15) suggest that annually resolved 10Be can be significantly affected by solar energetic particle (SEP) fluxes. This poses a problem, and presents an opportunity, as the accurate quantification of past solar magnetic activity requires the SEP effects to be determined and isolated, whilst doing so might provide a valuable record of past SEP fluxes. Aims: We compare the MB15 reconstruction of the heliospheric magnetic field (HMF), with two independent estimates of the HMF derived from sunspot records and geomagnetic variability. We aim to quantify the differences between the HMF reconstructions, and speculate on the origin of these differences. We test whether the differences between the reconstructions appear to depend on known significant space weather events. Methods: We analyse the distributions of the differences between the HMF reconstructions. We consider how the differences vary as a function of solar cycle phase, and, using a Kolmogorov-Smirnov test, we compare the distributions under the two conditions of whether or not large space weather events were known to have occurred. Results: We find that the MB15 reconstructions are generally marginally smaller in magnitude than the sunspot and geomagnetic HMF reconstructions. This bias varies as a function of solar cycle phase, and is largest in the declining phase of the solar cycle. We find that MB15's excision of the years with very large ground level enhancement (GLE) improves the agreement of the 10Be HMF estimate with the sunspot and geomagnetic reconstructions. We find no statistical evidence that GLEs, in general, affect the MB15 reconstruction, but this analysis is limited by having too few samples. We do find evidence that the MB15 reconstructions appear statistically different in years with great geomagnetic storms.

From evidence based bioethics to evidence based social policies.

PubMed

Bonneux, Luc

2007-01-01

In this issue, Norwegian authors demonstrate that causes of early expulsion out the workforce are rooted in childhood. They reconstruct individual biographies in administrative databases linked by an unique national identification number, looking forward 15 years in early adulthood and looking back 20 years till birth with close to negligible loss to follow up. Evidence based bioethics suggest that it is better to live in a country that allows reconstructing biographies in administrative databases then in countries that forbid access by restrictive legislation based on privacy considerations. The benefits of gained knowledge from existing and accessible information are tangible, particularly for the weak and the poor, while the harms of theoretical privacy invasion have not yet materialised. The study shows once again that disadvantage runs in families. Low parental education, parental disability and unstable marital unions predict early disability pensions and premature expulsion out gainful employment. The effect of low parental education is mediated by low education of the index person. However, in a feast of descriptive studies of socio-economic causes of ill health we still face a famine of evaluative intervention studies. An evidence based social policy should be based on effective interventions that are able to break the vicious circles of disability handed down from generation to generation.

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

Liu, Yang; Li, Si-Yu; Li, Yong-Ping

The study of reionization history plays an important role in understanding the evolution of our universe. It is commonly believed that the intergalactic medium (IGM) in our universe are fully ionized today, however the reionizing process remains to be mysterious. A simple instantaneous reionization process is usually adopted in modern cosmology without direct observational evidence. However, the history of ionization fraction, x{sub e}(z) will influence CMB observables and constraints on optical depth τ. With the mocked future data sets based on featured reionization model, we find the bias on τ introduced by instantaneous model can not be neglected. In thismore » paper, we study the cosmic reionization history in a model independent way, the so called principle component analysis (PCA) method, and reconstruct x{sub e} (z) at different redshift z with the data sets of Planck, WMAP 9 years temperature and polarization power spectra, combining with the baryon acoustic oscillation (BAO) from galaxy survey and type Ia supernovae (SN) Union 2.1 sample respectively. The results show that reconstructed x{sub e}(z) is consistent with instantaneous behavior, however, there exists slight deviation from this behavior at some epoch. With PCA method, after abandoning the noisy modes, we get stronger constraints, and the hints for featured x{sub e}(z) evolution could become a little more obvious.« less

The MedCLIVAR program and the climate of the Mediterranean region

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lionello, P.; Gacic, M.; Gomis, G.; Garcia-Herrera, R.; Giorgi, F.; Planton, S.; Trigo, R.; Theocharis, A.; Tsimplis, M. N.; Ulbrich, U.; Xoplaki, E.

2012-04-01

MedCLIVAR has become an independent platform for scientific discussion, the exchange of information and the coordination of activities across scientific groups around the Mediterranean. The scientific objects of the programme include past climate variability, connections between the Mediterranean and global climate, the Mediterranean Sea circulation and sea level, feedbacks on the global climate system, and the regional responses to greenhouse gas, air pollution, and aerosols. A strength of the MedCLIVAR programme is the development of a multidisciplinary vision of the evolution of Mediterranean climate, which includes atmospheric, marine and terrestrial components at multiple time scales, covering the range from paleo-reconstructions to future climate scenarios. MedCLIVAR has promoted scientific dissemination with many publication and by producing two books, which review the climate-related knowledge of the Mediterranean basin, one published at the beginning of the project and the second just recently finalized. Over these years, MedCLIVAR (www.medclivar.eu) has held 6 workshops and 2 schools, assigned 31 young scientist exchange grants and 7 senior scientist short visits, sponsored or co-sponsored 11 scientific meetings and organized annual sessions during the European Geophysical Union general assembly. A systematic archive of observations and model data simulations on the Mediterranean Climate, in order to both share data across the scientific community and ensure the data availability for 10 years, is presently being organized at the WDCC (http://cera-www.dkrz.de/CERA/MedCLIVAR.html)

Secondary reconstruction of a mobile eye socket 30 years after enucleation of the eyeball for retinoblastoma: a case report.

PubMed

Okumoto, T; Koike, G; Yoshimura, Y

2014-03-01

A mobile eye socket is generally reconstructed by inserting an implant into the scleral pocket immediately after bulbar exenteration, or by attaching the extra-ocular muscles to the implanted artificial eyeball immediately after enucleation. However, exposure of the implanted material and other problems can occur. We achieved satisfactory reconstruction of a mobile eye socket by using an autogenous cartilage graft and a pericranial flap in a patient with long-standing anophthalmia due to enucleation. This case is presented with a review of the relevant literature. Copyright © 2013 British Association of Plastic, Reconstructive and Aesthetic Surgeons. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Optimization of SPECT-CT Hybrid Imaging Using Iterative Image Reconstruction for Low-Dose CT: A Phantom Study

PubMed Central

Grosser, Oliver S.; Kupitz, Dennis; Ruf, Juri; Czuczwara, Damian; Steffen, Ingo G.; Furth, Christian; Thormann, Markus; Loewenthal, David; Ricke, Jens; Amthauer, Holger

2015-01-01

Background Hybrid imaging combines nuclear medicine imaging such as single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) or positron emission tomography (PET) with computed tomography (CT). Through this hybrid design, scanned patients accumulate radiation exposure from both applications. Imaging modalities have been the subject of long-term optimization efforts, focusing on diagnostic applications. It was the aim of this study to investigate the influence of an iterative CT image reconstruction algorithm (ASIR) on the image quality of the low-dose CT images. Methodology/Principal Findings Examinations were performed with a SPECT-CT scanner with standardized CT and SPECT-phantom geometries and CT protocols with systematically reduced X-ray tube currents. Analyses included image quality with respect to photon flux. Results were compared to the standard FBP reconstructed images. The general impact of the CT-based attenuation maps used during SPECT reconstruction was examined for two SPECT phantoms. Using ASIR for image reconstructions, image noise was reduced compared to FBP reconstructions for the same X-ray tube current. The Hounsfield unit (HU) values reconstructed by ASIR were correlated to the FBP HU values(R2 ≥ 0.88) and the contrast-to-noise ratio (CNR) was improved by ASIR. However, for a phantom with increased attenuation, the HU values shifted for low X-ray tube currents I ≤ 60 mA (p ≤ 0.04). In addition, the shift of the HU values was observed within the attenuation corrected SPECT images for very low X-ray tube currents (I ≤ 20 mA, p ≤ 0.001). Conclusion/Significance In general, the decrease in X-ray tube current up to 30 mA in combination with ASIR led to a reduction of CT-related radiation exposure without a significant decrease in image quality. PMID:26390216

Occupational versus environmental and lifestyle exposures of children and adolescents in the European Union.

PubMed

Bolt, Hermann M

2002-02-28

There is recent international concern about specific exposures of children and adolescents to toxicants. In general, the situation within the European Union appears as follows. (i) OCCUPATIONAL EXPOSURE: Due to regulatory measures, there are almost no toxicologically significant occupational exposure situations of children to chemical toxicants. This contrasts to the situation in developing countries. There is also strict regulation of occupational exposure of adolescents (aged under 18). In consequence, the number of potentially exposed adolescents has been minimised. (ii) ENVIRONMENTAL EXPOSURE: Specific concern is directed towards exposures of infants, especially to neurotoxic heavy metals and carcinogens, and there is much regional differentiation of environmental exposures. (iii) FOOD: Recent research results are indicative of the general progress made in the field of food safety. (iv) INCIDENTAL ACUTE EXPOSURE: Besides drugs, household chemicals are a source of incidental acute intoxications in children. In Germany, there has been a particular focus on ingestion of lamp petroleum oils since 1989. (v) Paramount problems are associated with increasing consumption of tobacco (mean age of starting smoking in Germany: 13.6 years), alcohol (percentage of addicts at ages 12-24 in Germany 6%) and cannabis among adolescents, calling for new ways of risk communication. In general, it will be necessary to consider children of different ages as separate risk groups.

Reconstructing the Basic Concepts of General Relativity from an Educational and Cultural Point of View

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Levrini, Olivia

Research in the history and philosophy of physics hasshown that the formalism of General Relativity can be interpreted in several different ways and,consequently, its teaching is very problematic. The present contribution is an example of a reconstruction of thedebate concerning the foundations of General Relativity on the basis of cultural and educational criteria.In particular, the debate will be presented as guided by the concept of space, and by the different perspectives from whichsuch a concept can be viewed. It will be pointed out that the various ways of looking at space give powerfulcriteria not only to create an order among the interpretations, but also to exploit the educational and culturalvalue of the debate.

Joint Discussion 14 Modeling dense stellar systems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sills, Alison I.; Subr, Ladislav; Portegies Zwart, Simon F.

2007-08-01

Joint Discussion 14 was held at the General Assembly of the International Astronomical Union from August 17 until 23 in the beautiful Bohemian capital, Prague. The blueprints for this meeting were laid out during the MODEST-5 workshop, held in the Canadian city of Hamilton, Ontario in August 2004. We were sitting in a nice cafe with local brew and food, discussing the future of the MODEST community when we posed the idea for this Joint Discussion at the General Assembly. The meeting was then coined MODEST-7.

The Dispersion Tensor and Its Unique Minimizer in Hashin-Shtrikman Micro-structures

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bălilescu, Loredana; Conca, Carlos; Ghosh, Tuhin; San Martín, Jorge; Vanninathan, Muthusamy

2018-05-01

In this paper, we introduce a macroscopic quantity, namely the dispersion tensor or the Burnett coefficients in the class of generalized Hashin-Shtrikman micro-structures (Tartar in The general theory of homogenization, volume 7 of Lecture notes of the Unione Matematica Italiana, Springer, Berlin, p 281, 2009). In the case of two-phase materials associated with the periodic Hashin-Shtrikman structures, we settle the issue that the dispersion tensor has a unique minimizer, which is the so called Apollonian-Hashin-Shtrikman micro-structure.

12 CFR 708a.305 - Disclosures and communications to members.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-01-01

... to any matter, including a general economic, political, racial, religious, social, or similar cause...) If a credit union posts merger-related information or material on its Web site, then it must simultaneously make a portion of its Web site available free of charge to its members to post and share their...

12 CFR 708a.4 - Disclosures and communications to members.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-01-01

... to any matter, including a general economic, political, racial, religious, social, or similar cause...) If a credit union posts conversion-related information or material on its Web site, then it must simultaneously make a portion of its Web site available free of charge to its members to post and share their...

78 FR 22593 - Generalized System of Preferences (GSP): Initiation of a Review of the Union of Burma and the Lao...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2013-04-16

...) as beneficiary developing countries under the GSP program, and, if designated, whether either country...-preference-gsp/gsp-program-inf . Burma was previously designated a beneficiary developing country under GSP...-developed country beneficiary developing country for purposes of the GSP program. Submissions should not...

12 CFR 741.6 - Financial and statistical and other reports.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... greater, but may reflect regulatory accounting principles other than GAAP if the credit union has total.... GAAP means generally accepted accounting principles, as defined in § 715.2(e) of this chapter. GAAP is... 12 Banks and Banking 6 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Financial and statistical and other reports...

12 CFR 717.21 - Affiliate marketing opt-out and exceptions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... federal credit union does not have a pre-existing business relationship with the consumer and none of the... provided: (i) By an affiliate that has or has previously had a pre-existing business relationship with the... business relationship with the consumer. (b) Making solicitations. (1) In general. For purposes of this...

Operation EUFOR TCHAD/RCA and the European Union’s Common Security and Defense Policy

DTIC Science & Technology

2010-10-01

Lessons from EUFOR Tchad/RCA, March 2010. 152. For a more detailed description of the EU Battlegroups, see Gustav Lindstrom , “Enter the EU Battlegroups...Major General Gregg F. Martin Commandant ***** STRATEGIC STUDIES INSTITUTE Director Professor Douglas C. Lovelace, Jr. Director of Research Dr. Antulio J

IFLA General Conference, 1986. Collections and Services Division. Section: Rare and Precious Books. Papers.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions, The Hague (Netherlands).

Papers on rare and precious books which were presented at the 1986 International Federation of Library Associations (IFLA) conference include: (1) "Compiling of 'The Union Catalogue of Japanese Old Books'--Investigating and Research of Old Books of Japanese Literature and Its Microfilming" (Yasuo Honda, Japan); (2) "The Rare and…

A Case for Developing Community Drug Indicators

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Loughran, Hilda; McCann, Mary Ellen

2011-01-01

The EU Action Plan on Drugs (2005-2008) calls for member states of the European Union to provide information on five key epidemiological indicators. These are: general population surveys, prevalence and patterns of problem drug use, drug related infectious diseases, drug related deaths and mortality of drug users, and demand for drug treatment.…

Training of Older Workers in Belgium. Training Discussion Paper No. 37.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gruloos, Jacques

Resulting from one of the International Labour Office's explorations of the training needs of older workers in industrialized countries, this document states that there are no Belgian training or retraining programs for older workers, although general education and retirement education programs do exist. The Christian Union for Pensioners and the…

Statements Relating to the Impact of Technological Change. Technology and the American Economy, Appendix, Volume VI.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

National Commission on Technology, Automation and Economic Progress, Washington, DC.

Forty-seven statements by industrial and business spokesmen, union and association representatives, and professors concern the broad impact of technological change on individuals, establishments, and society in general. Some of the longer presentations are (1) "The Poverty and Unemployment Crisis," by Walter Buckingham, (2) "Technological…

12 CFR 716.12 - Limits on sharing of account number information for marketing purposes.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... 12 Banks and Banking 6 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Limits on sharing of account number information... REGULATIONS AFFECTING CREDIT UNIONS PRIVACY OF CONSUMER FINANCIAL INFORMATION Limits on Disclosures § 716.12 Limits on sharing of account number information for marketing purposes. (a) General prohibition on...

Crucial Issues Pertaining to the Establishment of Community-Education Work Councils.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Walsh, John

This paper is one of a series related to various aspects of a pilot project to establish community-education work councils composed of educators, employers, local union representatives, and representatives of community organizations or of the general public. Following a historical overview of the relationship between industry and education and…

OCLC Utilization in Health Sciences Libraries. CE 35, Revised Edition.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Armes, Patti

This syllabus for a continuing education course describes the OCLC system and considers how it can be used by health science libraries. The general governance and administrative structure of OCLC and its network affiliates are detailed, and the OCLC subsystems--online union catalog, serials, interlibrary loan, and acquisitions--and their major…

Teacher Unions, School Districts, Universities, Governments: Time to Tango and Promote Convergence?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Naylor, Charlie

2007-01-01

This paper considers "convergence" as deliberate acts of will to achieve common goals within the context of the education service in general and school sector industrial relations in particular. Such language is unusual in the field of industrial relations, where assumptions are often based on notions of conflictual relationships.…

The Impact of Lifelong Learning on Vocational Education and Training in Sweden.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lindell, Mats; Abrahamsson, Kenneth

In Sweden, initial vocational education (IVT) is financed by public money and is designed to provide basic skills and general qualifications to perform certain functions in an occupation. Continuing vocational training (CVT) is provided primarily by public school institutions, private enterprises, and training companies, trade unions, and employer…

Adult Education in Sweden.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Miller, Harry; And Others

Folk high schools, study circles, labor market training, union education, and municipal adult schools are the major providers of adult education in Sweden. For the most part, these programs are financed by the government and are tuition free. Folk high schools, which are the oldest type, were founded to provide young adults with a general civic…

The Role of China in Korean Unification

DTIC Science & Technology

2003-06-01

Paleolithic sites. Furthermore, generally the Shang dynasty is regarded as not only China’s, but also East Asia’s first state (a traditional date: 1766 B.C...America and Assist Korea,’ starting to fit the entire country to a war orbit.”105 The PRC, encouraged by the Soviet Union, at last entered the

Sustainable Schools Program and Practice: Partnership Building with the Tempe Union High School District

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Koster, Auriane; Denker, Brendan

2012-01-01

Arizona State University's (ASU) Global Institute of Sustainability (GIOS) was awarded a five-year National Science Foundation (NSF) GK-12 grant in 2009 entitled "Sustainability Science for Sustainable Schools." The general focus of the grant is on science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) education in K-12 schools. The…

Future of United States Cyber: Examining the Past to Posture the Future

DTIC Science & Technology

2013-12-13

the Army. This proved especially beneficial during the 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis, when the Soviet Union retracted from Cuba based highly on the...restaurants, retailers, etc. from declined tourism in major cities around the U.S.83 In March 2013, the head of U.S. Cyber Command, General Keith

Budget. School Business Management Handbook No. 3. Revised.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Debus, Richard C.

The material in this handbook has been designed for continuous reference and use by administrators and school board members in formulating sound school budgets. Statements of practices and policy express the general situation and simply provide a starting point. Practical applications in union free, central, and city school districts in cities of…

Leonid Breznev and Richard Nixon examine plaques presented by Skylab crew

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1973-01-01

Leonid I. Breznev, General Secretary of the Communist Party, Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, and President Richard M. Nixon, during ceremonies at the Western White House in San Clemente, California, examine plaques presented by Skylab astronauts Charles Conrad Jr., center; Joseph P. Kerwin, second from right; and Paul J. Weitz, left.

Minor Delinquency and Immigration: A Longitudinal Study among Male Adolescents

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Titzmann, Peter F.; Silbereisen, Rainer K.; Mesch, Gustavo

2014-01-01

On the basis of general theories of delinquency and the specific situation of immigrants, this longitudinal study investigated predictors of initial levels and rates of change in delinquency among 188 male ethnic German Diaspora immigrants from the former Soviet Union (FSU) in Germany, 237 male native German adolescents, and 182 male Jewish…

12 CFR 717.21 - Affiliate marketing opt-out and exceptions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-01-01

... federal credit union does not have a pre-existing business relationship with the consumer and none of the... provided: (i) By an affiliate that has or has previously had a pre-existing business relationship with the... business relationship with the consumer. (b) Making solicitations. (1) In general. For purposes of this...

12 CFR 717.21 - Affiliate marketing opt-out and exceptions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-01-01

... federal credit union does not have a pre-existing business relationship with the consumer and none of the... provided: (i) By an affiliate that has or has previously had a pre-existing business relationship with the... business relationship with the consumer. (b) Making solicitations. (1) In general. For purposes of this...

75 FR 64681 - Airworthiness Directives; General Electric Company (GE) CF6-45 Series and CF6-50 Series Turbofan...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2010-10-20

... follow the instructions for sending your comments electronically. Mail: Docket Management Facility, U.S... J. Richards, Aerospace Engineer, Engine Certification Office, FAA, Engine & Propeller Directorate... signed the comment on behalf of an association, business, labor union, etc.). You may review the DOT's...

Protection for pregnant women in employment.

PubMed

Potrykus, C

1994-03-01

October 19 is the deadline for employers to implement improvements in maternity rights laid down by the Trade Union Reform and Employment Rights Act (TURERA) and the European directive to protect pregnant women's health and safety at work. Christina Potrykus outlines what the government and, separately, the general Whitley council have in store for women employees.

Health surveillance and agribusiness: the impact of pesticides on health and the environment. Danger ahead!

PubMed

Nasrala Neto, Elias; Lacaz, Francisco Antonio de Castro; Pignati, Wanderlei Antonio

2014-12-01

Pesticides are abundantly used in agribusiness and can be damaging to health and the environment. Society in general and agricultural, environmental and health institutions in particular have a legal and statutory duty to supervise their use. To identify and analyze these actions, interviews were conducted with managers of the municipal offices and union leaders representing the workers and farmers. Managers and rural producers were of the opinion that pesticides are essential to productivity and do not generate any impact on health and the environment. No policies or institutional relations monitoring pesticide use were identified or being considered. Rural workers' unions do not take any political initiatives to benefit the health of the workers themselves, their families and that of society in general. The conclusion draws is the pressing need to develop a model for sustainable agriculture, healthy and free of pesticides and that organized society and responsible institutions must undertake actions that meet the needs of the people who working on the farms or consume the agricultural products harvested there, especially controlling risks and consequences that can and must be avoided.

Undergraduate medical academic performance is improved by scientific training.

PubMed

Zhang, Lili; Zhang, Wei; Wu, Chong; Liu, Zhongming; Cai, Yunfei; Cao, Xingguo; He, Yushan; Liu, Guoxiang; Miao, Hongming

2017-09-01

The effect of scientific training on course learning in undergraduates is still controversial. In this study, we investigated the academic performance of undergraduate students with and without scientific training. The results show that scientific training improves students' test scores in general medical courses, such as biochemistry and molecular biology, cell biology, physiology, and even English. We classified scientific training into four levels. We found that literature reading could significantly improve students' test scores in general courses. Students who received scientific training carried out experiments more effectively and published articles performed better than their untrained counterparts in biochemistry and molecular biology examinations. The questionnaire survey demonstrated that the trained students were more confident of their course learning, and displayed more interest, motivation and capability in course learning. In summary, undergraduate academic performance is improved by scientific training. Our findings shed light on the novel strategies in the management of undergraduate education in the medical school. © 2017 by The International Union of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, 45(5):379-384, 2017. © 2017 The International Union of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology.

Historical land cover changes in the Great Lakes Region

USGS Publications Warehouse

Cole, K.L.; Davis, M.B.; Stearns, F.; Guntenspergen, G.; Walker, K.; Sisk, Thomas D.

1999-01-01

Two different methods of reconstructing historical vegetation change, drawing on General Land Office (GLO) surveys and fossil pollen deposits, are demonstrated by using data from the Great Lakes region. Both types of data are incorporated into landscape-scale analyses and presented through geographic information systems. Results from the two methods reinforce each other and allow reconstructions of past landscapes at different time scales. Changes to forests of the Great Lakes region during the last 150 years were far greater than the changes recorded over the preceding 1,000 years. Over the last 150 years, the total amount of forested land in the Great Lakes region declined by over 40%, and much of the remaining forest was converted to early successional forest types as a result of extensive logging. These results demonstrate the utility of using GLO survey data in conjunction with other data sources to reconstruct a generalized 'presettlement' condition and assess changes in landcover.

Phase dynamics of coupled oscillators reconstructed from data

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rosenblum, Michael; Kralemann, Bjoern; Pikovsky, Arkady

2013-03-01

We present a technique for invariant reconstruction of the phase dynamics equations for coupled oscillators from data. The invariant description is achieved by means of a transformation of phase estimates (protophases) obtained from general scalar observables to genuine phases. Staring from the bivariate data, we obtain the coupling functions in terms of these phases. We discuss the importance of the protophase-to-phase transformation for characterization of strength and directionality of interaction. To illustrate the technique we analyse the cardio-respiratory interaction on healthy humans. Our invariant approach is confirmed by high similarity of the coupling functions obtained from different observables of the cardiac system. Next, we generalize the technique to cover the case of small networks of coupled periodic units. We use the partial norms of the reconstructed coupling functions to quantify directed coupling between the oscillators. We illustrate the method by different network motifs for three coupled oscillators. We also discuss nonlinear effects in coupling.

Generalized channeled polarimetry.

PubMed

Alenin, Andrey S; Tyo, J Scott

2014-05-01

Channeled polarimeters measure polarization by modulating the measured intensity in order to create polarization-dependent channels that can be demodulated to reveal the desired polarization information. A number of channeled systems have been described in the past, but their proposed designs often unintentionally sacrifice optimality for ease of algebraic reconstruction. To obtain more optimal systems, a generalized treatment of channeled polarimeters is required. This paper describes methods that enable handling of multi-domain modulations and reconstruction of polarization information using linear algebra. We make practical choices regarding use of either Fourier or direct channels to make these methods more immediately useful. Employing the introduced concepts to optimize existing systems often results in superficial system changes, like changing the order, orientation, thickness, or spacing of polarization elements. For the two examples we consider, we were able to reduce noise in the reconstruction to 34.1% and 57.9% of the original design values.

Generalized ghost pilgrim dark energy in F(T,TG) cosmology

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sharif, M.; Nazir, Kanwal

2016-07-01

This paper is devoted to study the generalized ghost pilgrim dark energy (PDE) model in F(T,TG) gravity with flat Friedmann-Robertson-Walker (FRW) universe. In this scenario, we reconstruct F(T,TG) models and evaluate the corresponding equation of state (EoS) parameter for different choices of the scale factors. We assume power-law scale factor, scale factor for unification of two phases, intermediate and bouncing scale factor. We study the behavior of reconstructed models and EoS parameters graphically. It is found that all the reconstructed models show decreasing behavior for PDE parameter u = -2. On the other hand, the EoS parameter indicates transition from dust-like matter to phantom era for all choices of the scale factor except intermediate for which this is less than - 1. We conclude that all the results are in agreement with PDE phenomenon.

40 CFR Table 1 to Subpart Ggg of... - General Provisions Applicability to Subpart GGG

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... Yes 63.1(d) [Reserved] NA 63.1(e) Applicability of permit program before a relevant standard has been...) [Reserved] NA 63.5(b)(3) New construction/reconstruction Yes Except for changes and additions authorized... Yes 63.5(c) [Reserved] NA 63.5(d) Application for approval of construction/reconstruction Yes Except...

40 CFR Table 1 to Subpart Ggg of... - General Provisions Applicability to Subpart GGG

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... Yes 63.1(d) [Reserved] NA 63.1(e) Applicability of permit program before a relevant standard has been...) [Reserved] NA 63.5(b)(3) New construction/reconstruction Yes Except for changes and additions authorized... Yes 63.5(c) [Reserved] NA 63.5(d) Application for approval of construction/reconstruction Yes Except...

Wavefront Reconstruction and Mirror Surface Optimizationfor Adaptive Optics

DTIC Science & Technology

2014-06-01

TERMS Wavefront reconstruction, Adaptive optics , Wavelets, Atmospheric turbulence , Branch points, Mirror surface optimization, Space telescope, Segmented...contribution adapts the proposed algorithm to work when branch points are present from significant atmospheric turbulence . An analysis of vector spaces...estimate the distortion of the collected light caused by the atmosphere and corrected by adaptive optics . A generalized orthogonal wavelet wavefront

A generalized reconstruction framework for unconventional PET systems

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

Mathews, Aswin John, E-mail: amathews@wustl.edu; Li, Ke; O’Sullivan, Joseph A.

2015-08-15

Purpose: Quantitative estimation of the radionuclide activity concentration in positron emission tomography (PET) requires precise modeling of PET physics. The authors are focused on designing unconventional PET geometries for specific applications. This work reports the creation of a generalized reconstruction framework, capable of reconstructing tomographic PET data for systems that use right cuboidal detector elements positioned at arbitrary geometry using a regular Cartesian grid of image voxels. Methods: The authors report on a variety of design choices and optimization for the creation of the generalized framework. The image reconstruction algorithm is maximum likelihood-expectation–maximization. System geometry can be specified using amore » simple script. Given the geometry, a symmetry seeking algorithm finds existing symmetry in the geometry with respect to the image grid to improve the memory usage/speed. Normalization is approached from a geometry independent perspective. The system matrix is computed using the Siddon’s algorithm and subcrystal approach. The program is parallelized through open multiprocessing and message passing interface libraries. A wide variety of systems can be modeled using the framework. This is made possible by modeling the underlying physics and data correction, while generalizing the geometry dependent features. Results: Application of the framework for three novel PET systems, each designed for a specific application, is presented to demonstrate the robustness of the framework in modeling PET systems of unconventional geometry. Three PET systems of unconventional geometry are studied. (1) Virtual-pinhole half-ring insert integrated into Biograph-40: although the insert device improves image quality over conventional whole-body scanner, the image quality varies depending on the position of the insert and the object. (2) Virtual-pinhole flat-panel insert integrated into Biograph-40: preliminary results from an investigation into a modular flat-panel insert are presented. (3) Plant PET system: a reconfigurable PET system for imaging plants, with resolution of greater than 3.3 mm, is shown. Using the automated symmetry seeking algorithm, the authors achieved a compression ratio of the storage and memory requirement by a factor of approximately 50 for the half-ring and flat-panel systems. For plant PET system, the compression ratio is approximately five. The ratio depends on the level of symmetry that exists in different geometries. Conclusions: This work brings the field closer to arbitrary geometry reconstruction. A generalized reconstruction framework can be used to validate multiple hypotheses and the effort required to investigate each system is reduced. Memory usage/speed can be improved with certain optimizations.« less

A generalized reconstruction framework for unconventional PET systems.

PubMed

Mathews, Aswin John; Li, Ke; Komarov, Sergey; Wang, Qiang; Ravindranath, Bosky; O'Sullivan, Joseph A; Tai, Yuan-Chuan

2015-08-01

Quantitative estimation of the radionuclide activity concentration in positron emission tomography (PET) requires precise modeling of PET physics. The authors are focused on designing unconventional PET geometries for specific applications. This work reports the creation of a generalized reconstruction framework, capable of reconstructing tomographic PET data for systems that use right cuboidal detector elements positioned at arbitrary geometry using a regular Cartesian grid of image voxels. The authors report on a variety of design choices and optimization for the creation of the generalized framework. The image reconstruction algorithm is maximum likelihood-expectation-maximization. System geometry can be specified using a simple script. Given the geometry, a symmetry seeking algorithm finds existing symmetry in the geometry with respect to the image grid to improve the memory usage/speed. Normalization is approached from a geometry independent perspective. The system matrix is computed using the Siddon's algorithm and subcrystal approach. The program is parallelized through open multiprocessing and message passing interface libraries. A wide variety of systems can be modeled using the framework. This is made possible by modeling the underlying physics and data correction, while generalizing the geometry dependent features. Application of the framework for three novel PET systems, each designed for a specific application, is presented to demonstrate the robustness of the framework in modeling PET systems of unconventional geometry. Three PET systems of unconventional geometry are studied. (1) Virtual-pinhole half-ring insert integrated into Biograph-40: although the insert device improves image quality over conventional whole-body scanner, the image quality varies depending on the position of the insert and the object. (2) Virtual-pinhole flat-panel insert integrated into Biograph-40: preliminary results from an investigation into a modular flat-panel insert are presented. (3) Plant PET system: a reconfigurable PET system for imaging plants, with resolution of greater than 3.3 mm, is shown. Using the automated symmetry seeking algorithm, the authors achieved a compression ratio of the storage and memory requirement by a factor of approximately 50 for the half-ring and flat-panel systems. For plant PET system, the compression ratio is approximately five. The ratio depends on the level of symmetry that exists in different geometries. This work brings the field closer to arbitrary geometry reconstruction. A generalized reconstruction framework can be used to validate multiple hypotheses and the effort required to investigate each system is reduced. Memory usage/speed can be improved with certain optimizations.

A generalized reconstruction framework for unconventional PET systems

PubMed Central

Mathews, Aswin John; Li, Ke; Komarov, Sergey; Wang, Qiang; Ravindranath, Bosky; O’Sullivan, Joseph A.; Tai, Yuan-Chuan

2015-01-01

Purpose: Quantitative estimation of the radionuclide activity concentration in positron emission tomography (PET) requires precise modeling of PET physics. The authors are focused on designing unconventional PET geometries for specific applications. This work reports the creation of a generalized reconstruction framework, capable of reconstructing tomographic PET data for systems that use right cuboidal detector elements positioned at arbitrary geometry using a regular Cartesian grid of image voxels. Methods: The authors report on a variety of design choices and optimization for the creation of the generalized framework. The image reconstruction algorithm is maximum likelihood-expectation–maximization. System geometry can be specified using a simple script. Given the geometry, a symmetry seeking algorithm finds existing symmetry in the geometry with respect to the image grid to improve the memory usage/speed. Normalization is approached from a geometry independent perspective. The system matrix is computed using the Siddon’s algorithm and subcrystal approach. The program is parallelized through open multiprocessing and message passing interface libraries. A wide variety of systems can be modeled using the framework. This is made possible by modeling the underlying physics and data correction, while generalizing the geometry dependent features. Results: Application of the framework for three novel PET systems, each designed for a specific application, is presented to demonstrate the robustness of the framework in modeling PET systems of unconventional geometry. Three PET systems of unconventional geometry are studied. (1) Virtual-pinhole half-ring insert integrated into Biograph-40: although the insert device improves image quality over conventional whole-body scanner, the image quality varies depending on the position of the insert and the object. (2) Virtual-pinhole flat-panel insert integrated into Biograph-40: preliminary results from an investigation into a modular flat-panel insert are presented. (3) Plant PET system: a reconfigurable PET system for imaging plants, with resolution of greater than 3.3 mm, is shown. Using the automated symmetry seeking algorithm, the authors achieved a compression ratio of the storage and memory requirement by a factor of approximately 50 for the half-ring and flat-panel systems. For plant PET system, the compression ratio is approximately five. The ratio depends on the level of symmetry that exists in different geometries. Conclusions: This work brings the field closer to arbitrary geometry reconstruction. A generalized reconstruction framework can be used to validate multiple hypotheses and the effort required to investigate each system is reduced. Memory usage/speed can be improved with certain optimizations. PMID:26233187

BRain health and healthy AgeINg in retired rugby union players, the BRAIN Study: study protocol for an observational study in the UK.

PubMed

Gallo, Valentina; McElvenny, Damien; Hobbs, Catherine; Davoren, Donna; Morris, Huw; Crutch, Sebastian; Zetterberg, Henrik; Fox, Nick C; Kemp, Simon; Cross, Matthew; Arden, Nigel K; Davies, Madeleine A M; Malaspina, Andrea; Pearce, Neil

2017-12-26

Relatively little is known about the long-term health of former elite rugby players, or former sportspeople more generally. As well as the potential benefits of being former elite sportspersons, there may be potential health risks from exposures occurring during an individual's playing career, as well as following retirement. Each contact sport has vastly different playing dynamics, therefore exposing its players to different types of potential traumas. Current evidence suggests that these are not necessarily comparable in terms of pathophysiology, and their potential long-term adverse effects might also differ. There is currently limited but increasing evidence that poorer age-related and neurological health exists among former professional sportsmen exposed to repetitive concussions; however the evidence is limited on rugby union players, specifically. We present the protocol for a cross-sectional study to assess the association between self-reported history of concussion during a playing career, and subsequent measures of healthy ageing and neurological and cognitive impairment. We are recruiting a sample of approximately 200 retired rugby players (former Oxford and Cambridge University rugby players and members of the England Rugby International Club) aged 50 years or more, and collecting a number of general and neurological health-related outcome measures though validated assessments. Biomarkers of neurodegeneration (neurofilaments and tau) will be also be measured. Although the study is focusing on rugby union players specifically, the general study design and the methods for assessing neurological health are likely to be relevant to other studies of former elite sportspersons. The study has been approved by the Ethical Committee of London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine (reference: 11634-2). It is intended that results of this study will be published in peer-reviewed medical journals, communicated to participants, the general public and all relevant stakeholders. © Article author(s) (or their employer(s) unless otherwise stated in the text of the article) 2017. All rights reserved. No commercial use is permitted unless otherwise expressly granted.

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.

On the deep-mantle origin of the Deccan Traps.

PubMed

Glišović, Petar; Forte, Alessandro M

2017-02-10

The Deccan Traps in west-central India constitute one of Earth's largest continental flood basalt provinces, whose eruption played a role in the Cretaceous-Paleogene extinction event. The unknown mantle structure under the Indian Ocean at the start of the Cenozoic presents a challenge for connecting the event to a deep mantle origin. We used a back-and-forth iterative method for time-reversed convection modeling, which incorporates tomography-based, present-day mantle heterogeneity to reconstruct mantle structure at the start of the Cenozoic. We show a very low-density, deep-seated upwelling that ascends beneath the Réunion hot spot at the time of the Deccan eruptions. We found a second active upwelling below the Comores hot spot that likely contributed to the region of partial melt feeding the massive eruption. Copyright © 2017, American Association for the Advancement of Science.

Common arc method for diffraction pattern orientation.

PubMed

Bortel, Gábor; Tegze, Miklós

2011-11-01

Very short pulses of X-ray free-electron lasers opened the way to obtaining diffraction signal from single particles beyond the radiation dose limit. For three-dimensional structure reconstruction many patterns are recorded in the object's unknown orientation. A method is described for the orientation of continuous diffraction patterns of non-periodic objects, utilizing intensity correlations in the curved intersections of the corresponding Ewald spheres, and hence named the common arc orientation method. The present implementation of the algorithm optionally takes into account Friedel's law, handles missing data and is capable of determining the point group of symmetric objects. Its performance is demonstrated on simulated diffraction data sets and verification of the results indicates a high orientation accuracy even at low signal levels. The common arc method fills a gap in the wide palette of orientation methods. © 2011 International Union of Crystallography

Dissolution of first unions in Colombia, Panama, and Peru.

PubMed

Goldman, N

1981-11-01

An analysis of marital histories from World Fertility Survey data in Colombia, Panama, and Peru indicates a high level of union dissolution: the probabilities of a first union ending by separation within twenty years of the onset of union equal .27, .40, and .18 in the three countries respectively. Dissolution probabilities are especially high among women with young ages at first union and among women residing in urban areas. For all subgroups studied, consensual unions are characterized by several times the risk of separation of legal marriages. Consensual unions are especially frequent among women in rural areas, women with little education and women who enter unions at young ages. The different prevalence of consensual unions among the different subgroups affects the associations between union stability and various correlates so that it becomes essential to investigate the factors affecting union stability for both consensual unions and legal marriages. In spite of high dissolution rates, remarriage rates in all three countries are also high, as are the percentages of time spent in a union. Hence, the potential effects of voluntary disruption of unions on fertility appear to be modest.

3D imaging of nanomaterials by discrete tomography.

PubMed

Batenburg, K J; Bals, S; Sijbers, J; Kübel, C; Midgley, P A; Hernandez, J C; Kaiser, U; Encina, E R; Coronado, E A; Van Tendeloo, G

2009-05-01

The field of discrete tomography focuses on the reconstruction of samples that consist of only a few different materials. Ideally, a three-dimensional (3D) reconstruction of such a sample should contain only one grey level for each of the compositions in the sample. By exploiting this property in the reconstruction algorithm, either the quality of the reconstruction can be improved significantly, or the number of required projection images can be reduced. The discrete reconstruction typically contains fewer artifacts and does not have to be segmented, as it already contains one grey level for each composition. Recently, a new algorithm, called discrete algebraic reconstruction technique (DART), has been proposed that can be used effectively on experimental electron tomography datasets. In this paper, we propose discrete tomography as a general reconstruction method for electron tomography in materials science. We describe the basic principles of DART and show that it can be applied successfully to three different types of samples, consisting of embedded ErSi(2) nanocrystals, a carbon nanotube grown from a catalyst particle and a single gold nanoparticle, respectively.

Tomographic reconstruction of atmospheric turbulence with the use of time-dependent stochastic inversion.

PubMed

Vecherin, Sergey N; Ostashev, Vladimir E; Ziemann, A; Wilson, D Keith; Arnold, K; Barth, M

2007-09-01

Acoustic travel-time tomography allows one to reconstruct temperature and wind velocity fields in the atmosphere. In a recently published paper [S. Vecherin et al., J. Acoust. Soc. Am. 119, 2579 (2006)], a time-dependent stochastic inversion (TDSI) was developed for the reconstruction of these fields from travel times of sound propagation between sources and receivers in a tomography array. TDSI accounts for the correlation of temperature and wind velocity fluctuations both in space and time and therefore yields more accurate reconstruction of these fields in comparison with algebraic techniques and regular stochastic inversion. To use TDSI, one needs to estimate spatial-temporal covariance functions of temperature and wind velocity fluctuations. In this paper, these spatial-temporal covariance functions are derived for locally frozen turbulence which is a more general concept than a widely used hypothesis of frozen turbulence. The developed theory is applied to reconstruction of temperature and wind velocity fields in the acoustic tomography experiment carried out by University of Leipzig, Germany. The reconstructed temperature and velocity fields are presented and errors in reconstruction of these fields are studied.

The Reconstruction Problem Revisited

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Suresh, Ambaby

1999-01-01

The role of reconstruction in avoiding oscillations in upwind schemes is reexamined, with the aim of providing simple, concise proofs. In one dimension, it is shown that if the reconstruction is any arbitrary function bounded by neighboring cell averages and increasing within a cell for increasing data, the resulting scheme is monotonicity preserving, even though the reconstructed function may have overshoots and undershoots at the cell edges and is in general not a monotone function. In the special case of linear reconstruction, it is shown that merely bounding the reconstruction between neighboring cell averages is sufficient to obtain a monotonicity preservinc,y scheme. In two dimensions, it is shown that some ID TVD limiters applied in each direction result in schemes that are not positivity preserving, i.e. do not give positive updates when the data are positive. A simple proof is given to show that if the reconstruction inside the cell is bounded by the neighboring cell averages (including corner neighbors), then the scheme is positivity preserving. A new limiter that enforces this condition but is not as dissipative as the Minmod limiter is also presented.

HR Public meeting

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

Heuer, Rolf; Catherin, Anne-Sylvie; Vuillemin, Vin

2010-06-25

Cher(e)s collègues, En collaboration avec le Département HR, le Directeur général a le plaisir de vous convier à une réunion publique qui se tiendra le vendredi 25 juin 2010 à 9h30 dans l’Amphithéâtre principal (Bâtiment 500)*. Un café d’accueil y sera servi à partir de 9h. Cette réunion abordera les thèmes suivants : • Valeurs de l’Organisation (Directeur général) • Code de Conduite (Directeur général / Anne-Sylvie Catherin) • Création du nouveau rôle d’Ombudsperson (Vincent Vuillemin); Ces présentations seront suivies d’une séance de questions-réponses. Nous espérons vous retrouver nombreux le 25 juin ! Meilleures salutations, Anne-Sylvie Catherin Chef du Départementmore » des Ressources humaines *Cette réunion sera retransmise simultanément dans l’Amphithéâtre BE de Prévessin (Bâtiment 864) et également disponible à l’adresse suivante : http://webcast.cern.ch. Dear colleagues, In collaboration with HR Department, the Director-General would like to invite you to an information meeting which will be held on Friday 25 June 2010 at 9:30 am in the Main Auditorium (Building 500)*. A welcome coffee will be available from 9:00 am. During this meeting, information will be given about: • Organization’s values (Director-General) • Code of Conduct (Director-General / Anne-Sylvie Catherin) • New Ombudsperson role (Vincent Vuillemin) These presentations will be followed by a questions & answers session. We look forward to seeing you all on 25 June! Best regards, Anne-Sylvie Catherin Head, Human Resources Department. This meeting will be simultaneously retransmitted in BE Auditorium (Building 864) and available at the following address: http://webcast.cern.ch.« less

HR Public meeting

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

None

2010-10-12

Cher(e)s collègues, En collaboration avec le Département HR, le Directeur général a le plaisir de vous convier à une réunion publique qui se tiendra le vendredi 25 juin 2010 à 9h30 dans l’Amphithéâtre principal (Bâtiment 500)*. Un café d’accueil y sera servi à partir de 9h. Cette réunion abordera les thèmes suivants : Valeurs de l’Organisation (Directeur général); Code de Conduite (Directeur général / Anne-Sylvie Catherin); Création du nouveau rôle d’Ombudsperson (Vincent Vuillemin) Ces présentations seront suivies d’une séance de questions-réponses. Nous espérons vous retrouver nombreux le 25 juin ! Meilleures salutations, Anne-Sylvie Catherin Chef du Département des Ressources humainesmore » *Cette réunion sera retransmise simultanément dans l’Amphithéâtre BE de Prévessin (Bâtiment 864) et également disponible à l’adresse suivante : http://webcast.cern.ch [Dear colleagues, In collaboration with HR Department, the Director-General would like to invite you to an information meeting which will be held on Friday 25 June 2010 at 9:30 am in the Main Auditorium (Building 500)*. A welcome coffee will be available from 9:00 am. During this meeting, information will be given about: Organization’s values (Director-General); Code of Conduct (Director-General / Anne-Sylvie Catherin); New Ombudsperson role (Vincent Vuillemin); These presentations will be followed by a questions & answers session. We look forward to seeing you all on 25 June! Best regards, Anne-Sylvie Catherin Head, Human Resources Department *This meeting will be simultaneously retransmitted in BE Auditorium (Building 864) and available at the following address: http://webcast.cern.ch.« less

Automatic alignment for three-dimensional tomographic reconstruction

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

van Leeuwen, Tristan; Maretzke, Simon; Joost Batenburg, K.

2018-02-01

In tomographic reconstruction, the goal is to reconstruct an unknown object from a collection of line integrals. Given a complete sampling of such line integrals for various angles and directions, explicit inverse formulas exist to reconstruct the object. Given noisy and incomplete measurements, the inverse problem is typically solved through a regularized least-squares approach. A challenge for both approaches is that in practice the exact directions and offsets of the x-rays are only known approximately due to, e.g. calibration errors. Such errors lead to artifacts in the reconstructed image. In the case of sufficient sampling and geometrically simple misalignment, the measurements can be corrected by exploiting so-called consistency conditions. In other cases, such conditions may not apply and we have to solve an additional inverse problem to retrieve the angles and shifts. In this paper we propose a general algorithmic framework for retrieving these parameters in conjunction with an algebraic reconstruction technique. The proposed approach is illustrated by numerical examples for both simulated data and an electron tomography dataset.

Distributed wavefront reconstruction with SABRE for real-time large scale adaptive optics control

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Brunner, Elisabeth; de Visser, Cornelis C.; Verhaegen, Michel

2014-08-01

We present advances on Spline based ABerration REconstruction (SABRE) from (Shack-)Hartmann (SH) wavefront measurements for large-scale adaptive optics systems. SABRE locally models the wavefront with simplex B-spline basis functions on triangular partitions which are defined on the SH subaperture array. This approach allows high accuracy through the possible use of nonlinear basis functions and great adaptability to any wavefront sensor and pupil geometry. The main contribution of this paper is a distributed wavefront reconstruction method, D-SABRE, which is a 2 stage procedure based on decomposing the sensor domain into sub-domains each supporting a local SABRE model. D-SABRE greatly decreases the computational complexity of the method and removes the need for centralized reconstruction while obtaining a reconstruction accuracy for simulated E-ELT turbulences within 1% of the global method's accuracy. Further, a generalization of the methodology is proposed making direct use of SH intensity measurements which leads to an improved accuracy of the reconstruction compared to centroid algorithms using spatial gradients.

Spectral CT Reconstruction with Image Sparsity and Spectral Mean

PubMed Central

Zhang, Yi; Xi, Yan; Yang, Qingsong; Cong, Wenxiang; Zhou, Jiliu

2017-01-01

Photon-counting detectors can acquire x-ray intensity data in different energy bins. The signal to noise ratio of resultant raw data in each energy bin is generally low due to the narrow bin width and quantum noise. To address this problem, here we propose an image reconstruction approach for spectral CT to simultaneously reconstructs x-ray attenuation coefficients in all the energy bins. Because the measured spectral data are highly correlated among the x-ray energy bins, the intra-image sparsity and inter-image similarity are important prior acknowledge for image reconstruction. Inspired by this observation, the total variation (TV) and spectral mean (SM) measures are combined to improve the quality of reconstructed images. For this purpose, a linear mapping function is used to minimalize image differences between energy bins. The split Bregman technique is applied to perform image reconstruction. Our numerical and experimental results show that the proposed algorithms outperform competing iterative algorithms in this context. PMID:29034267