Sample records for web authoring tools

  1. Redesigning Instruction through Web-based Course Authoring Tools.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Dabbagh, Nada H.; Schmitt, Jeff

    1998-01-01

    Examines the pedagogical implications of redesigning instruction for Web-based delivery through a case study of an undergraduate computer science course. Initially designed for a traditional learning environment, this course transformed to a Web-based course using WebCT, a Web-based course authoring tool. Discusses the specific features of WebCT.…

  2. Authoring Tools

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Treviranus, Jutta

    Authoring tools that are accessible and that enable authors to produce accessible Web content play a critical role in web accessibility. Widespread use of authoring tools that comply to the W3C Authoring Tool Accessibility Guidelines (ATAG) would ensure that even authors who are neither knowledgeable about nor particularly motivated to produce accessible content do so by default. The principles and techniques of ATAG are discussed. Some examples of accessible authoring tools are described including authoring tool content management components such as TinyMCE. Considerations for creating an accessible collaborative environment are also covered. As part of providing accessible content, the debate between system-based personal optimization and one universally accessible site configuration is presented. The issues and potential solutions to address the accessibility crisis presented by the advent of rich internet applications are outlined. This challenge must be met to ensure that a large segment of the population is able to participate in the move toward the web as a two-way communication mechanism.

  3. Today's Authoring Tools for Tomorrow's Semantic Web.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Dingley, Andy; Shabajee, Paul

    This paper reports on the development of a prototype authoring tool developed as part of on-going research around the needs of the ARKive project. The project holds text, rich-media and descriptions of factual statements about bio-diversity and conservation information. A key user community is that of school age children, requiring the mark-up of…

  4. Web Tools: The Second Generation

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Pascopella, Angela

    2008-01-01

    Web 2.0 tools and technologies, or second generation tools, help districts to save time and money, and eliminate the need to transfer or move files back and forth across computers. Many Web 2.0 tools help students think critically and solve problems, which falls under the 21st-century skills. The second-generation tools are growing in popularity…

  5. The EMBL-EBI bioinformatics web and programmatic tools framework.

    PubMed

    Li, Weizhong; Cowley, Andrew; Uludag, Mahmut; Gur, Tamer; McWilliam, Hamish; Squizzato, Silvano; Park, Young Mi; Buso, Nicola; Lopez, Rodrigo

    2015-07-01

    Since 2009 the EMBL-EBI Job Dispatcher framework has provided free access to a range of mainstream sequence analysis applications. These include sequence similarity search services (https://www.ebi.ac.uk/Tools/sss/) such as BLAST, FASTA and PSI-Search, multiple sequence alignment tools (https://www.ebi.ac.uk/Tools/msa/) such as Clustal Omega, MAFFT and T-Coffee, and other sequence analysis tools (https://www.ebi.ac.uk/Tools/pfa/) such as InterProScan. Through these services users can search mainstream sequence databases such as ENA, UniProt and Ensembl Genomes, utilising a uniform web interface or systematically through Web Services interfaces (https://www.ebi.ac.uk/Tools/webservices/) using common programming languages, and obtain enriched results with novel visualisations. Integration with EBI Search (https://www.ebi.ac.uk/ebisearch/) and the dbfetch retrieval service (https://www.ebi.ac.uk/Tools/dbfetch/) further expands the usefulness of the framework. New tools and updates such as NCBI BLAST+, InterProScan 5 and PfamScan, new categories such as RNA analysis tools (https://www.ebi.ac.uk/Tools/rna/), new databases such as ENA non-coding, WormBase ParaSite, Pfam and Rfam, and new workflow methods, together with the retirement of depreciated services, ensure that the framework remains relevant to today's biological community. © The Author(s) 2015. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Nucleic Acids Research.

  6. Panning for Gold: Utility of the World Wide Web for Metadata and Authority Control in Special Collections.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Ellero, Nadine P.

    2002-01-01

    Describes the use of the World Wide Web as a name authority resource and tool for special collections' analytic-level cataloging, based on experiences at The Claude Moore Health Sciences Library. Highlights include primary documents and metadata; authority control and the Web as authority source information; and future possibilities. (Author/LRW)

  7. In Interactive, Web-Based Approach to Metadata Authoring

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Pollack, Janine; Wharton, Stephen W. (Technical Monitor)

    2001-01-01

    NASA's Global Change Master Directory (GCMD) serves a growing number of users by assisting the scientific community in the discovery of and linkage to Earth science data sets and related services. The GCMD holds over 8000 data set descriptions in Directory Interchange Format (DIF) and 200 data service descriptions in Service Entry Resource Format (SERF), encompassing the disciplines of geology, hydrology, oceanography, meteorology, and ecology. Data descriptions also contain geographic coverage information, thus allowing researchers to discover data pertaining to a particular geographic location, as well as subject of interest. The GCMD strives to be the preeminent data locator for world-wide directory level metadata. In this vein, scientists and data providers must have access to intuitive and efficient metadata authoring tools. Existing GCMD tools are not currently attracting. widespread usage. With usage being the prime indicator of utility, it has become apparent that current tools must be improved. As a result, the GCMD has released a new suite of web-based authoring tools that enable a user to create new data and service entries, as well as modify existing data entries. With these tools, a more interactive approach to metadata authoring is taken, as they feature a visual "checklist" of data/service fields that automatically update when a field is completed. In this way, the user can quickly gauge which of the required and optional fields have not been populated. With the release of these tools, the Earth science community will be further assisted in efficiently creating quality data and services metadata. Keywords: metadata, Earth science, metadata authoring tools

  8. Global Connections: Web Conferencing Tools Help Educators Collaborate Anytime, Anywhere

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Forrester, Dave

    2009-01-01

    Web conferencing tools help educators from around the world collaborate in real time. Teachers, school counselors, and administrators need only to put on their headsets, check the time zone, and log on to meet and learn from educators across the globe. In this article, the author discusses how educators can use Web conferencing at their schools.…

  9. Web Audio/Video Streaming Tool

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Guruvadoo, Eranna K.

    2003-01-01

    In order to promote NASA-wide educational outreach program to educate and inform the public of space exploration, NASA, at Kennedy Space Center, is seeking efficient ways to add more contents to the web by streaming audio/video files. This project proposes a high level overview of a framework for the creation, management, and scheduling of audio/video assets over the web. To support short-term goals, the prototype of a web-based tool is designed and demonstrated to automate the process of streaming audio/video files. The tool provides web-enabled users interfaces to manage video assets, create publishable schedules of video assets for streaming, and schedule the streaming events. These operations are performed on user-defined and system-derived metadata of audio/video assets stored in a relational database while the assets reside on separate repository. The prototype tool is designed using ColdFusion 5.0.

  10. Visual DMDX: A web-based authoring tool for DMDX, a Windows display program with millisecond accuracy.

    PubMed

    Garaizar, Pablo; Reips, Ulf-Dietrich

    2015-09-01

    DMDX is a software package for the experimental control and timing of stimulus display for Microsoft Windows systems. DMDX is reliable, flexible, millisecond accurate, and can be downloaded free of charge; therefore it has become very popular among experimental researchers. However, setting up a DMDX-based experiment is burdensome because of its command-based interface. Further, DMDX relies on RTF files in which parts of the stimuli, design, and procedure of an experiment are defined in a complicated (DMASTR-compatible) syntax. Other experiment software, such as E-Prime, Psychopy, and WEXTOR, became successful as a result of integrated visual authoring tools. Such an intuitive interface was lacking for DMDX. We therefore created and present here Visual DMDX (http://visualdmdx.com/), a HTML5-based web interface to set up experiments and export them to DMDX item files format in RTF. Visual DMDX offers most of the features available from the rich DMDX/DMASTR syntax, and it is a useful tool to support researchers who are new to DMDX. Both old and modern versions of DMDX syntax are supported. Further, with Visual DMDX, we go beyond DMDX by having added export to JSON (a versatile web format), easy backup, and a preview option for experiments. In two examples, one experiment each on lexical decision making and affective priming, we explain in a step-by-step fashion how to create experiments using Visual DMDX. We release Visual DMDX under an open-source license to foster collaboration in its continuous improvement.

  11. GREAT: a web portal for Genome Regulatory Architecture Tools.

    PubMed

    Bouyioukos, Costas; Bucchini, François; Elati, Mohamed; Képès, François

    2016-07-08

    GREAT (Genome REgulatory Architecture Tools) is a novel web portal for tools designed to generate user-friendly and biologically useful analysis of genome architecture and regulation. The online tools of GREAT are freely accessible and compatible with essentially any operating system which runs a modern browser. GREAT is based on the analysis of genome layout -defined as the respective positioning of co-functional genes- and its relation with chromosome architecture and gene expression. GREAT tools allow users to systematically detect regular patterns along co-functional genomic features in an automatic way consisting of three individual steps and respective interactive visualizations. In addition to the complete analysis of regularities, GREAT tools enable the use of periodicity and position information for improving the prediction of transcription factor binding sites using a multi-view machine learning approach. The outcome of this integrative approach features a multivariate analysis of the interplay between the location of a gene and its regulatory sequence. GREAT results are plotted in web interactive graphs and are available for download either as individual plots, self-contained interactive pages or as machine readable tables for downstream analysis. The GREAT portal can be reached at the following URL https://absynth.issb.genopole.fr/GREAT and each individual GREAT tool is available for downloading. © The Author(s) 2016. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Nucleic Acids Research.

  12. Impact of a web-based tool (WebCONSORT) to improve the reporting of randomised trials: results of a randomised controlled trial.

    PubMed

    Hopewell, Sally; Boutron, Isabelle; Altman, Douglas G; Barbour, Ginny; Moher, David; Montori, Victor; Schriger, David; Cook, Jonathan; Gerry, Stephen; Omar, Omar; Dutton, Peter; Roberts, Corran; Frangou, Eleni; Clifton, Lei; Chiocchia, Virginia; Rombach, Ines; Wartolowska, Karolina; Ravaud, Philippe

    2016-11-28

    The CONSORT Statement is an evidence-informed guideline for reporting randomised controlled trials. A number of extensions have been developed that specify additional information to report for more complex trials. The aim of this study was to evaluate the impact of using a simple web-based tool (WebCONSORT, which incorporates a number of different CONSORT extensions) on the completeness of reporting of randomised trials published in biomedical publications. We conducted a parallel group randomised trial. Journals which endorsed the CONSORT Statement (i.e. referred to it in the Instruction to Authors) but do not actively implement it (i.e. require authors to submit a completed CONSORT checklist) were invited to participate. Authors of randomised trials were requested by the editor to use the web-based tool at the manuscript revision stage. Authors registering to use the tool were randomised (centralised computer generated) to WebCONSORT or control. In the WebCONSORT group, they had access to a tool allowing them to combine the different CONSORT extensions relevant to their trial and generate a customised checklist and flow diagram that they must submit to the editor. In the control group, authors had only access to a CONSORT flow diagram generator. Authors, journal editors, and outcome assessors were blinded to the allocation. The primary outcome was the proportion of CONSORT items (main and extensions) reported in each article post revision. A total of 46 journals actively recruited authors into the trial (25 March 2013 to 22 September 2015); 324 author manuscripts were randomised (WebCONSORT n = 166; control n = 158), of which 197 were reports of randomised trials (n = 94; n = 103). Over a third (39%; n = 127) of registered manuscripts were excluded from the analysis, mainly because the reported study was not a randomised trial. Of those included in the analysis, the most common CONSORT extensions selected were non-pharmacologic (n = 43; n

  13. Teaching Talented Writers with Web 2.0 Tools

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Olthouse, Jill M.; Miller, Myriah Tasker

    2012-01-01

    This article is a review of 12 online writing resources and contains suggestions about how such resources might be used in a differentiated classroom with talented writers. Youth with writing talent are defined by distinguishing characteristics and the authors discuss how those characteristics can be supported and enhanced using Web 2.0 tools.…

  14. Tool independence for the Web Accessibility Quantitative Metric.

    PubMed

    Vigo, Markel; Brajnik, Giorgio; Arrue, Myriam; Abascal, Julio

    2009-07-01

    The Web Accessibility Quantitative Metric (WAQM) aims at accurately measuring the accessibility of web pages. One of the main features of WAQM among others is that it is evaluation tool independent for ranking and accessibility monitoring scenarios. This article proposes a method to attain evaluation tool independence for all foreseeable scenarios. After demonstrating that homepages have a more similar error profile than any other web page in a given web site, 15 homepages were measured with 10,000 different values of WAQM parameters using EvalAccess and LIFT, two automatic evaluation tools for accessibility. A similar procedure was followed with random pages and with several test files obtaining several tuples that minimise the difference between both tools. One thousand four hundred forty-nine web pages from 15 web sites were measured with these tuples and those values that minimised the difference between the tools were selected. Once the WAQM was tuned, the accessibility of 15 web sites was measured with two metrics for web sites, concluding that even if similar values can be produced, obtaining the same scores is undesirable since evaluation tools behave in a different way.

  15. Evaluating the Utility of Web-Based Consumer Support Tools Using Rough Sets

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Maciag, Timothy; Hepting, Daryl H.; Slezak, Dominik; Hilderman, Robert J.

    On the Web, many popular e-commerce sites provide consumers with decision support tools to assist them in their commerce-related decision-making. Many consumers will rank the utility of these tools quite highly. Data obtained from web usage mining analyses, which may provide knowledge about a user's online experiences, could help indicate the utility of these tools. This type of analysis could provide insight into whether provided tools are adequately assisting consumers in conducting their online shopping activities or if new or additional enhancements need consideration. Although some research in this regard has been described in previous literature, there is still much that can be done. The authors of this paper hypothesize that a measurement of consumer decision accuracy, i.e. a measurement preferences, could help indicate the utility of these tools. This paper describes a procedure developed towards this goal using elements of rough set theory. The authors evaluated the procedure using two support tools, one based on a tool developed by the US-EPA and the other developed by one of the authors called cogito. Results from the evaluation did provide interesting insights on the utility of both support tools. Although it was shown that the cogito tool obtained slightly higher decision accuracy, both tools could be improved from additional enhancements. Details of the procedure developed and results obtained from the evaluation will be provided. Opportunities for future work are also discussed.

  16. Analysis Tool Web Services from the EMBL-EBI.

    PubMed

    McWilliam, Hamish; Li, Weizhong; Uludag, Mahmut; Squizzato, Silvano; Park, Young Mi; Buso, Nicola; Cowley, Andrew Peter; Lopez, Rodrigo

    2013-07-01

    Since 2004 the European Bioinformatics Institute (EMBL-EBI) has provided access to a wide range of databases and analysis tools via Web Services interfaces. This comprises services to search across the databases available from the EMBL-EBI and to explore the network of cross-references present in the data (e.g. EB-eye), services to retrieve entry data in various data formats and to access the data in specific fields (e.g. dbfetch), and analysis tool services, for example, sequence similarity search (e.g. FASTA and NCBI BLAST), multiple sequence alignment (e.g. Clustal Omega and MUSCLE), pairwise sequence alignment and protein functional analysis (e.g. InterProScan and Phobius). The REST/SOAP Web Services (http://www.ebi.ac.uk/Tools/webservices/) interfaces to these databases and tools allow their integration into other tools, applications, web sites, pipeline processes and analytical workflows. To get users started using the Web Services, sample clients are provided covering a range of programming languages and popular Web Service tool kits, and a brief guide to Web Services technologies, including a set of tutorials, is available for those wishing to learn more and develop their own clients. Users of the Web Services are informed of improvements and updates via a range of methods.

  17. Analysis Tool Web Services from the EMBL-EBI

    PubMed Central

    McWilliam, Hamish; Li, Weizhong; Uludag, Mahmut; Squizzato, Silvano; Park, Young Mi; Buso, Nicola; Cowley, Andrew Peter; Lopez, Rodrigo

    2013-01-01

    Since 2004 the European Bioinformatics Institute (EMBL-EBI) has provided access to a wide range of databases and analysis tools via Web Services interfaces. This comprises services to search across the databases available from the EMBL-EBI and to explore the network of cross-references present in the data (e.g. EB-eye), services to retrieve entry data in various data formats and to access the data in specific fields (e.g. dbfetch), and analysis tool services, for example, sequence similarity search (e.g. FASTA and NCBI BLAST), multiple sequence alignment (e.g. Clustal Omega and MUSCLE), pairwise sequence alignment and protein functional analysis (e.g. InterProScan and Phobius). The REST/SOAP Web Services (http://www.ebi.ac.uk/Tools/webservices/) interfaces to these databases and tools allow their integration into other tools, applications, web sites, pipeline processes and analytical workflows. To get users started using the Web Services, sample clients are provided covering a range of programming languages and popular Web Service tool kits, and a brief guide to Web Services technologies, including a set of tutorials, is available for those wishing to learn more and develop their own clients. Users of the Web Services are informed of improvements and updates via a range of methods. PMID:23671338

  18. deepTools2: a next generation web server for deep-sequencing data analysis.

    PubMed

    Ramírez, Fidel; Ryan, Devon P; Grüning, Björn; Bhardwaj, Vivek; Kilpert, Fabian; Richter, Andreas S; Heyne, Steffen; Dündar, Friederike; Manke, Thomas

    2016-07-08

    We present an update to our Galaxy-based web server for processing and visualizing deeply sequenced data. Its core tool set, deepTools, allows users to perform complete bioinformatic workflows ranging from quality controls and normalizations of aligned reads to integrative analyses, including clustering and visualization approaches. Since we first described our deepTools Galaxy server in 2014, we have implemented new solutions for many requests from the community and our users. Here, we introduce significant enhancements and new tools to further improve data visualization and interpretation. deepTools continue to be open to all users and freely available as a web service at deeptools.ie-freiburg.mpg.de The new deepTools2 suite can be easily deployed within any Galaxy framework via the toolshed repository, and we also provide source code for command line usage under Linux and Mac OS X. A public and documented API for access to deepTools functionality is also available. © The Author(s) 2016. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Nucleic Acids Research.

  19. Web tools for predictive toxicology model building.

    PubMed

    Jeliazkova, Nina

    2012-07-01

    The development and use of web tools in chemistry has accumulated more than 15 years of history already. Powered by the advances in the Internet technologies, the current generation of web systems are starting to expand into areas, traditional for desktop applications. The web platforms integrate data storage, cheminformatics and data analysis tools. The ease of use and the collaborative potential of the web is compelling, despite the challenges. The topic of this review is a set of recently published web tools that facilitate predictive toxicology model building. The focus is on software platforms, offering web access to chemical structure-based methods, although some of the frameworks could also provide bioinformatics or hybrid data analysis functionalities. A number of historical and current developments are cited. In order to provide comparable assessment, the following characteristics are considered: support for workflows, descriptor calculations, visualization, modeling algorithms, data management and data sharing capabilities, availability of GUI or programmatic access and implementation details. The success of the Web is largely due to its highly decentralized, yet sufficiently interoperable model for information access. The expected future convergence between cheminformatics and bioinformatics databases provides new challenges toward management and analysis of large data sets. The web tools in predictive toxicology will likely continue to evolve toward the right mix of flexibility, performance, scalability, interoperability, sets of unique features offered, friendly user interfaces, programmatic access for advanced users, platform independence, results reproducibility, curation and crowdsourcing utilities, collaborative sharing and secure access.

  20. WebPresent: a World Wide Web-based telepresentation tool for physicians

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Sampath-Kumar, Srihari; Banerjea, Anindo; Moshfeghi, Mehran

    1997-05-01

    In this paper, we present the design architecture and the implementation status of WebPresent - a world wide web based tele-presentation tool. This tool allows a physician to use a conference server workstation and make a presentation of patient cases to a geographically distributed audience. The audience consists of other physicians collaborating on patients' health care management and physicians participating in continuing medical education. These physicians are at several locations with networks of different bandwidth and capabilities connecting them. Audiences also receive the patient case information on different computers ranging form high-end display workstations to laptops with low-resolution displays. WebPresent is a scalable networked multimedia tool which supports the presentation of hypertext, images, audio, video, and a white-board to remote physicians with hospital Intranet access. WebPresent allows the audience to receive customized information. The data received can differ in resolution and bandwidth, depending on the availability of resources such as display resolution and network bandwidth.

  1. BOWS (bioinformatics open web services) to centralize bioinformatics tools in web services.

    PubMed

    Velloso, Henrique; Vialle, Ricardo A; Ortega, J Miguel

    2015-06-02

    Bioinformaticians face a range of difficulties to get locally-installed tools running and producing results; they would greatly benefit from a system that could centralize most of the tools, using an easy interface for input and output. Web services, due to their universal nature and widely known interface, constitute a very good option to achieve this goal. Bioinformatics open web services (BOWS) is a system based on generic web services produced to allow programmatic access to applications running on high-performance computing (HPC) clusters. BOWS intermediates the access to registered tools by providing front-end and back-end web services. Programmers can install applications in HPC clusters in any programming language and use the back-end service to check for new jobs and their parameters, and then to send the results to BOWS. Programs running in simple computers consume the BOWS front-end service to submit new processes and read results. BOWS compiles Java clients, which encapsulate the front-end web service requisitions, and automatically creates a web page that disposes the registered applications and clients. Bioinformatics open web services registered applications can be accessed from virtually any programming language through web services, or using standard java clients. The back-end can run in HPC clusters, allowing bioinformaticians to remotely run high-processing demand applications directly from their machines.

  2. Web Based Tool for Mission Operations Scenarios

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Boyles, Carole A.; Bindschadler, Duane L.

    2008-01-01

    A conventional practice for spaceflight projects is to document scenarios in a monolithic Operations Concept document. Such documents can be hundreds of pages long and may require laborious updates. Software development practice utilizes scenarios in the form of smaller, individual use cases, which are often structured and managed using UML. We have developed a process and a web-based scenario tool that utilizes a similar philosophy of smaller, more compact scenarios (but avoids the formality of UML). The need for a scenario process and tool became apparent during the authors' work on a large astrophysics mission. It was noted that every phase of the Mission (e.g., formulation, design, verification and validation, and operations) looked back to scenarios to assess completeness of requirements and design. It was also noted that terminology needed to be clarified and structured to assure communication across all levels of the project. Attempts to manage, communicate, and evolve scenarios at all levels of a project using conventional tools (e.g., Excel) and methods (Scenario Working Group meetings) were not effective given limitations on budget and staffing. The objective of this paper is to document the scenario process and tool created to offer projects a low-cost capability to create, communicate, manage, and evolve scenarios throughout project development. The process and tool have the further benefit of allowing the association of requirements with particular scenarios, establishing and viewing relationships between higher- and lower-level scenarios, and the ability to place all scenarios in a shared context. The resulting structured set of scenarios is widely visible (using a web browser), easily updated, and can be searched according to various criteria including the level (e.g., Project, System, and Team) and Mission Phase. Scenarios are maintained in a web-accessible environment that provides a structured set of scenario fields and allows for maximum

  3. Discovering Authorities and Hubs in Different Topological Web Graph Structures.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Meghabghab, George

    2002-01-01

    Discussion of citation analysis on the Web considers Web hyperlinks as a source to analyze citations. Topics include basic graph theory applied to Web pages, including matrices, linear algebra, and Web topology; and hubs and authorities, including a search technique called HITS (Hyperlink Induced Topic Search). (Author/LRW)

  4. Delivering Electronic Resources with Web OPACs and Other Web-based Tools: Needs of Reference Librarians.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Bordeianu, Sever; Carter, Christina E.; Dennis, Nancy K.

    2000-01-01

    Describes Web-based online public access catalogs (Web OPACs) and other Web-based tools as gateway methods for providing access to library collections. Addresses solutions for overcoming barriers to information, such as through the implementation of proxy servers and other authentication tools for remote users. (Contains 18 references.)…

  5. A Performance-Based Web Budget Tool

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Abou-Sayf, Frank K.; Lau, Wilson

    2007-01-01

    A web-based formula-driven tool has been developed for the purpose of performing two distinct academic department budgeting functions: allocation funding to the department, and budget management by the department. The tool's major features are discussed and its uses demonstrated. The tool's advantages are presented. (Contains 10 figures.)

  6. WebQuests as Language-Learning Tools

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Aydin, Selami

    2016-01-01

    This study presents a review of the literature that examines WebQuests as tools for second-language acquisition and foreign language-learning processes to guide teachers in their teaching activities and researchers in further research on the issue. The study first introduces the theoretical background behind WebQuest use in the mentioned…

  7. Academic Web Authoring Mulitmedia Development and Course Management Tools

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Halloran, Margaret E.

    2005-01-01

    Course management software enables faculty members to learn one software package for web-based curriculum, assessment, synchronous and asynchronous discussions, collaborative work, multimedia and interactive resource development. There are as many as 109 different course management software packages on the market and several studies have evaluated…

  8. A Web-Based Tool to Support Data-Based Early Intervention Decision Making

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Buzhardt, Jay; Greenwood, Charles; Walker, Dale; Carta, Judith; Terry, Barbara; Garrett, Matthew

    2010-01-01

    Progress monitoring and data-based intervention decision making have become key components of providing evidence-based early childhood special education services. Unfortunately, there is a lack of tools to support early childhood service providers' decision-making efforts. The authors describe a Web-based system that guides service providers…

  9. Web Based Personal Nutrition Management Tool

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Bozkurt, Selen; Zayim, Neşe; Gülkesen, Kemal Hakan; Samur, Mehmet Kemal

    Internet is being used increasingly as a resource for accessing health-related information because of its several advantages. Therefore, Internet tailoring becomes quite preferable in health education and personal health management recently. Today, there are many web based health programs de-signed for individuals. Among these studies nutrition and weight management is popular because, obesity has become a heavy burden for populations worldwide. In this study, we designed a web based personal nutrition education and management tool, The Nutrition Web Portal, in order to enhance patients’ nutrition knowledge, and provide behavioral change against obesity. The present paper reports analysis, design and development processes of The Nutrition Web Portal.

  10. Authoring, Pedagogy, and the Web: Expectations versus Reality.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Bangs, Paul

    2002-01-01

    Discusses two easy-to-use authoring systems--"Potatoes" and "MALTED"--for designing Web-based language instruction. Provides a check list of advice for would-be authors of language learning programs. (Author/VWL)

  11. WebCN: A web-based computation tool for in situ-produced cosmogenic nuclides

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Ma, Xiuzeng; Li, Yingkui; Bourgeois, Mike; Caffee, Marc; Elmore, David; Granger, Darryl; Muzikar, Paul; Smith, Preston

    2007-06-01

    Cosmogenic nuclide techniques are increasingly being utilized in geoscience research. For this it is critical to establish an effective, easily accessible and well defined tool for cosmogenic nuclide computations. We have been developing a web-based tool (WebCN) to calculate surface exposure ages and erosion rates based on the nuclide concentrations measured by the accelerator mass spectrometry. WebCN for 10Be and 26Al has been finished and published at http://www.physics.purdue.edu/primelab/for_users/rockage.html. WebCN for 36Cl is under construction. WebCN is designed as a three-tier client/server model and uses the open source PostgreSQL for the database management and PHP for the interface design and calculations. On the client side, an internet browser and Microsoft Access are used as application interfaces to access the system. Open Database Connectivity is used to link PostgreSQL and Microsoft Access. WebCN accounts for both spatial and temporal distributions of the cosmic ray flux to calculate the production rates of in situ-produced cosmogenic nuclides at the Earth's surface.

  12. Using Firefly Tools to Enhance Archive Web Pages

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Roby, W.; Wu, X.; Ly, L.; Goldina, T.

    2013-10-01

    Astronomy web developers are looking for fast and powerful HTML 5/AJAX tools to enhance their web archives. We are exploring ways to make this easier for the developer. How could you have a full FITS visualizer or a Web 2.0 table that supports paging, sorting, and filtering in your web page in 10 minutes? Can it be done without even installing any software or maintaining a server? Firefly is a powerful, configurable system for building web-based user interfaces to access astronomy science archives. It has been in production for the past three years. Recently, we have made some of the advanced components available through very simple JavaScript calls. This allows a web developer, without any significant knowledge of Firefly, to have FITS visualizers, advanced table display, and spectrum plots on their web pages with minimal learning curve. Because we use cross-site JSONP, installing a server is not necessary. Web sites that use these tools can be created in minutes. Firefly was created in IRSA, the NASA/IPAC Infrared Science Archive (http://irsa.ipac.caltech.edu). We are using Firefly to serve many projects including Spitzer, Planck, WISE, PTF, LSST and others.

  13. Distance Learning Courses on the Web: The Authoring Approach.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Santos, Neide; Diaz, Alicia; Bibbo, Luis Mariano

    This paper proposes a framework for supporting the authoring process of distance learning courses. An overview of distance learning courses and the World Wide Web is presented. The proposed framework is then described, including: (1) components of the framework--a hypermedia design methodology for authoring the course, links to related Web sites,…

  14. Mining a Web Citation Database for Author Co-Citation Analysis.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    He, Yulan; Hui, Siu Cheung

    2002-01-01

    Proposes a mining process to automate author co-citation analysis based on the Web Citation Database, a data warehouse for storing citation indices of Web publications. Describes the use of agglomerative hierarchical clustering for author clustering and multidimensional scaling for displaying author cluster maps, and explains PubSearch, a…

  15. Sharik 1.0: User Needs and System Requirements for a Web-Based Tool to Support Collaborative Sensemaking

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2016-05-01

    Sharik 1.0: User Needs and System Requirements for a Web -Based Tool to Support Collaborative Sensemaking Shadi Ghajar-Khosravi...share the new intelligence items with their peers. In this report, the authors describe Sharik (SHAring Resources, Information, and Knowledge), a web ...SHAring Resources, Information and Knowledge, soit le partage des ressources, de l’information et des connaissances), un outil Web qui facilite le

  16. Web3DMol: interactive protein structure visualization based on WebGL.

    PubMed

    Shi, Maoxiang; Gao, Juntao; Zhang, Michael Q

    2017-07-03

    A growing number of web-based databases and tools for protein research are being developed. There is now a widespread need for visualization tools to present the three-dimensional (3D) structure of proteins in web browsers. Here, we introduce our 3D modeling program-Web3DMol-a web application focusing on protein structure visualization in modern web browsers. Users submit a PDB identification code or select a PDB archive from their local disk, and Web3DMol will display and allow interactive manipulation of the 3D structure. Featured functions, such as sequence plot, fragment segmentation, measure tool and meta-information display, are offered for users to gain a better understanding of protein structure. Easy-to-use APIs are available for developers to reuse and extend Web3DMol. Web3DMol can be freely accessed at http://web3dmol.duapp.com/, and the source code is distributed under the MIT license. © The Author(s) 2017. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Nucleic Acids Research.

  17. Setup Instructions for the Applied Anomaly Detection Tool (AADT) Web Server

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2016-09-01

    ARL-TR-7798 ● SEP 2016 US Army Research Laboratory Setup Instructions for the Applied Anomaly Detection Tool (AADT) Web Server...for the Applied Anomaly Detection Tool (AADT) Web Server by Christian D Schlesiger Computational and Information Sciences Directorate, ARL...SUBTITLE Setup Instructions for the Applied Anomaly Detection Tool (AADT) Web Server 5a. CONTRACT NUMBER 5b. GRANT NUMBER 5c. PROGRAM ELEMENT

  18. World Wide Web Pages--Tools for Teaching and Learning.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Beasley, Sarah; Kent, Jean

    Created to help educators incorporate World Wide Web pages into teaching and learning, this collection of Web pages presents resources, materials, and techniques for using the Web. The first page focuses on tools for teaching and learning via the Web, providing pointers to sites containing the following: (1) course materials for both distance and…

  19. WebProtégé: A Collaborative Ontology Editor and Knowledge Acquisition Tool for the Web

    PubMed Central

    Tudorache, Tania; Nyulas, Csongor; Noy, Natalya F.; Musen, Mark A.

    2012-01-01

    In this paper, we present WebProtégé—a lightweight ontology editor and knowledge acquisition tool for the Web. With the wide adoption of Web 2.0 platforms and the gradual adoption of ontologies and Semantic Web technologies in the real world, we need ontology-development tools that are better suited for the novel ways of interacting, constructing and consuming knowledge. Users today take Web-based content creation and online collaboration for granted. WebProtégé integrates these features as part of the ontology development process itself. We tried to lower the entry barrier to ontology development by providing a tool that is accessible from any Web browser, has extensive support for collaboration, and a highly customizable and pluggable user interface that can be adapted to any level of user expertise. The declarative user interface enabled us to create custom knowledge-acquisition forms tailored for domain experts. We built WebProtégé using the existing Protégé infrastructure, which supports collaboration on the back end side, and the Google Web Toolkit for the front end. The generic and extensible infrastructure allowed us to easily deploy WebProtégé in production settings for several projects. We present the main features of WebProtégé and its architecture and describe briefly some of its uses for real-world projects. WebProtégé is free and open source. An online demo is available at http://webprotege.stanford.edu. PMID:23807872

  20. On Recommending Web 2.0 Tools to Personalise Learning

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Juškeviciene, Anita; Kurilovas, Eugenijus

    2014-01-01

    The paper aims to present research results on using Web 2.0 tools for learning personalisation. In the work, personalised Web 2.0 tools selection method is presented. This method takes into account student's learning preferences for content and communication modes tailored to the learning activities with a view to help the learner to quickly and…

  1. Prototyping Tool for Web-Based Multiuser Online Role-Playing Game

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Okamoto, Shusuke; Kamada, Masaru; Yonekura, Tatsuhiro

    This letter proposes a prototyping tool for Web-based Multiuser Online Role-Playing Game (MORPG). The design goal is to make this tool simple and powerful. The tool is comprised of a GUI editor, a translator and a runtime environment. The GUI editor is used to edit state-transition diagrams, each of which defines the behavior of the fictional characters. The state-transition diagrams are translated into C program codes, which plays the role of a game engine in RPG system. The runtime environment includes PHP, JavaScript with Ajax and HTML. So the prototype system can be played on the usual Web browser, such as Fire-fox, Safari and IE. On a click or key press by a player, the Web browser sends it to the Web server to reflect its consequence on the screens which other players are looking at. Prospected users of this tool include programming novices and schoolchildren. The knowledge or skill of any specific programming languages is not required to create state-transition diagrams. Its structure is not only suitable for the definition of a character behavior but also intuitive to help novices understand. Therefore, the users can easily create Web-based MORPG system with the tool.

  2. AstrodyToolsWeb an e-Science project in Astrodynamics and Celestial Mechanics fields

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    López, R.; San-Juan, J. F.

    2013-05-01

    Astrodynamics Web Tools, AstrodyToolsWeb (http://tastrody.unirioja.es), is an ongoing collaborative Web Tools computing infrastructure project which has been specially designed to support scientific computation. AstrodyToolsWeb provides project collaborators with all the technical and human facilities in order to wrap, manage, and use specialized noncommercial software tools in Astrodynamics and Celestial Mechanics fields, with the aim of optimizing the use of resources, both human and material. However, this project is open to collaboration from the whole scientific community in order to create a library of useful tools and their corresponding theoretical backgrounds. AstrodyToolsWeb offers a user-friendly web interface in order to choose applications, introduce data, and select appropriate constraints in an intuitive and easy way for the user. After that, the application is executed in real time, whenever possible; then the critical information about program behavior (errors and logs) and output, including the postprocessing and interpretation of its results (graphical representation of data, statistical analysis or whatever manipulation therein), are shown via the same web interface or can be downloaded to the user's computer.

  3. Digital Discernment: An E-Commerce Web Site Evaluation Tool

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Sigman, Betsy Page; Boston, Brian J.

    2013-01-01

    Students entering the business workforce today may well share some responsibility for developing, revising, or evaluating their company's Web site. They may lack the experience, however, to critique their employer's Web presence effectively. The purpose of developing Digital Discernment, an e-commerce Web site evaluation tool, was to prepare…

  4. Authoring Issues beyond Tools

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Spierling, Ulrike; Szilas, Nicolas

    Authoring is still considered a bottleneck in successful Interactive Storytelling and Drama. The claim for intuitive authoring tools is high, especially for tools that allow storytellers and artists to define dynamic content that can be run with an AI-based story engine. We explored two concrete authoring processes in depth, using various Interactive Storytelling prototypes, and have provided feedback from the practical steps. The result is a presentation of general issues in authoring Interactive Storytelling, rather than of particular problems with a specific system that could be overcome by 'simply' designing the right interface. Priorities for future developments are also outlined.

  5. Web-Based Learning Design Tool

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Bruno, F. B.; Silva, T. L. K.; Silva, R. P.; Teixeira, F. G.

    2012-01-01

    Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to propose a web-based tool that enables the development and provision of learning designs and its reuse and re-contextualization as generative learning objects, aimed at developing educational materials. Design/methodology/approach: The use of learning objects can facilitate the process of production and…

  6. Gobe: an interactive, web-based tool for comparative genomic visualization.

    PubMed

    Pedersen, Brent S; Tang, Haibao; Freeling, Michael

    2011-04-01

    Gobe is a web-based tool for viewing comparative genomic data. It supports viewing multiple genomic regions simultaneously. Its simple text format and flash-based rendering make it an interactive, exploratory research tool. Gobe can be used without installation through our web service, or downloaded and customized with stylesheets and javascript callback functions. Gobe is a flash application that runs in all modern web-browsers. The full source-code, including that for the online web application is available under the MIT license at: http://github.com/brentp/gobe. Sample applications are hosted at http://try-gobe.appspot.com/ and http://synteny.cnr.berkeley.edu/gobe-app/.

  7. WMT: The CSDMS Web Modeling Tool

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Piper, M.; Hutton, E. W. H.; Overeem, I.; Syvitski, J. P.

    2015-12-01

    The Community Surface Dynamics Modeling System (CSDMS) has a mission to enable model use and development for research in earth surface processes. CSDMS strives to expand the use of quantitative modeling techniques, promotes best practices in coding, and advocates for the use of open-source software. To streamline and standardize access to models, CSDMS has developed the Web Modeling Tool (WMT), a RESTful web application with a client-side graphical interface and a server-side database and API that allows users to build coupled surface dynamics models in a web browser on a personal computer or a mobile device, and run them in a high-performance computing (HPC) environment. With WMT, users can: Design a model from a set of components Edit component parameters Save models to a web-accessible server Share saved models with the community Submit runs to an HPC system Download simulation results The WMT client is an Ajax application written in Java with GWT, which allows developers to employ object-oriented design principles and development tools such as Ant, Eclipse and JUnit. For deployment on the web, the GWT compiler translates Java code to optimized and obfuscated JavaScript. The WMT client is supported on Firefox, Chrome, Safari, and Internet Explorer. The WMT server, written in Python and SQLite, is a layered system, with each layer exposing a web service API: wmt-db: database of component, model, and simulation metadata and output wmt-api: configure and connect components wmt-exe: launch simulations on remote execution servers The database server provides, as JSON-encoded messages, the metadata for users to couple model components, including descriptions of component exchange items, uses and provides ports, and input parameters. Execution servers are network-accessible computational resources, ranging from HPC systems to desktop computers, containing the CSDMS software stack for running a simulation. Once a simulation completes, its output, in NetCDF, is packaged

  8. Graphite Web: web tool for gene set analysis exploiting pathway topology

    PubMed Central

    Sales, Gabriele; Calura, Enrica; Martini, Paolo; Romualdi, Chiara

    2013-01-01

    Graphite web is a novel web tool for pathway analyses and network visualization for gene expression data of both microarray and RNA-seq experiments. Several pathway analyses have been proposed either in the univariate or in the global and multivariate context to tackle the complexity and the interpretation of expression results. These methods can be further divided into ‘topological’ and ‘non-topological’ methods according to their ability to gain power from pathway topology. Biological pathways are, in fact, not only gene lists but can be represented through a network where genes and connections are, respectively, nodes and edges. To this day, the most used approaches are non-topological and univariate although they miss the relationship among genes. On the contrary, topological and multivariate approaches are more powerful, but difficult to be used by researchers without bioinformatic skills. Here we present Graphite web, the first public web server for pathway analysis on gene expression data that combines topological and multivariate pathway analyses with an efficient system of interactive network visualizations for easy results interpretation. Specifically, Graphite web implements five different gene set analyses on three model organisms and two pathway databases. Graphite Web is freely available at http://graphiteweb.bio.unipd.it/. PMID:23666626

  9. Standards opportunities around data-bearing Web pages.

    PubMed

    Karger, David

    2013-03-28

    The evolving Web has seen ever-growing use of structured data, thanks to the way it enhances information authoring, querying, visualization and sharing. To date, however, most structured data authoring and management tools have been oriented towards programmers and Web developers. End users have been left behind, unable to leverage structured data for information management and communication as well as professionals. In this paper, I will argue that many of the benefits of structured data management can be provided to end users as well. I will describe an approach and tools that allow end users to define their own schemas (without knowing what a schema is), manage data and author (not program) interactive Web visualizations of that data using the Web tools with which they are already familiar, such as plain Web pages, blogs, wikis and WYSIWYG document editors. I will describe our experience deploying these tools and some lessons relevant to their future evolution.

  10. Designing and Implementing Web-Based Scaffolding Tools for Technology-Enhanced Socioscientific Inquiry

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Shin, Suhkyung; Brush, Thomas A.; Glazewski, Krista D.

    2017-01-01

    This study explores how web-based scaffolding tools provide instructional support while implementing a socio-scientific inquiry (SSI) unit in a science classroom. This case study focused on how students used web-based scaffolding tools during SSI activities, and how students perceived the SSI unit and the scaffolding tools embedded in the SSI…

  11. Selecting a Free Web-Hosted Survey Tool for Student Use

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Elbeck, Matt

    2014-01-01

    This study provides marketing educators a review of free web-based survey services and guidance for student use. A mixed methods approach started with online searches and metrics identifying 13 free web-hosted survey services, described as demonstration or project tools, and ranked using popularity and importance web-based metrics. For each…

  12. OfftargetFinder: a web tool for species-specific RNAi design.

    PubMed

    Good, R T; Varghese, T; Golz, J F; Russell, D A; Papanicolaou, A; Edwards, O; Robin, C

    2016-04-15

    RNA interference (RNAi) technology is being developed as a weapon for pest insect control. To maximize the specificity that such an approach affords we have developed a bioinformatic web tool that searches the ever-growing arthropod transcriptome databases so that pest-specific RNAi sequences can be identified. This will help technology developers finesse the design of RNAi sequences and suggests which non-target species should be assessed in the risk assessment process. http://rnai.specifly.org crobin@unimelb.edu.au. © The Author 2015. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

  13. Integration of Web 2.0 Tools in Learning a Programming Course

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Majid, Nazatul Aini Abd

    2014-01-01

    Web 2.0 tools are expected to assist students to acquire knowledge effectively in their university environment. However, the lack of effort from lecturers in planning the learning process can make it difficult for the students to optimize their learning experiences. The aim of this paper is to integrate Web 2.0 tools with learning strategy in…

  14. WebGIVI: a web-based gene enrichment analysis and visualization tool.

    PubMed

    Sun, Liang; Zhu, Yongnan; Mahmood, A S M Ashique; Tudor, Catalina O; Ren, Jia; Vijay-Shanker, K; Chen, Jian; Schmidt, Carl J

    2017-05-04

    A major challenge of high throughput transcriptome studies is presenting the data to researchers in an interpretable format. In many cases, the outputs of such studies are gene lists which are then examined for enriched biological concepts. One approach to help the researcher interpret large gene datasets is to associate genes and informative terms (iTerm) that are obtained from the biomedical literature using the eGIFT text-mining system. However, examining large lists of iTerm and gene pairs is a daunting task. We have developed WebGIVI, an interactive web-based visualization tool ( http://raven.anr.udel.edu/webgivi/ ) to explore gene:iTerm pairs. WebGIVI was built via Cytoscape and Data Driven Document JavaScript libraries and can be used to relate genes to iTerms and then visualize gene and iTerm pairs. WebGIVI can accept a gene list that is used to retrieve the gene symbols and corresponding iTerm list. This list can be submitted to visualize the gene iTerm pairs using two distinct methods: a Concept Map or a Cytoscape Network Map. In addition, WebGIVI also supports uploading and visualization of any two-column tab separated data. WebGIVI provides an interactive and integrated network graph of gene and iTerms that allows filtering, sorting, and grouping, which can aid biologists in developing hypothesis based on the input gene lists. In addition, WebGIVI can visualize hundreds of nodes and generate a high-resolution image that is important for most of research publications. The source code can be freely downloaded at https://github.com/sunliang3361/WebGIVI . The WebGIVI tutorial is available at http://raven.anr.udel.edu/webgivi/tutorial.php .

  15. Criteria for Comparing Children's Web Search Tools.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Kuntz, Jerry

    1999-01-01

    Presents criteria for evaluating and comparing Web search tools designed for children. Highlights include database size; accountability; categorization; search access methods; help files; spell check; URL searching; links to alternative search services; advertising; privacy policy; and layout and design. (LRW)

  16. WebGeocalc and Cosmographia: Modern Tools to Access SPICE Archives

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Semenov, B. V.; Acton, C. H.; Bachman, N. J.; Ferguson, E. W.; Rose, M. E.; Wright, E. D.

    2017-06-01

    The WebGeocalc (WGC) web client-server tool and the SPICE-enhanced Cosmographia visualization program are two new ways for accessing space mission geometry data provided in the PDS SPICE kernel archives and by mission operational SPICE kernel sets.

  17. SNPversity: a web-based tool for visualizing diversity

    PubMed Central

    Schott, David A; Vinnakota, Abhinav G; Portwood, John L; Andorf, Carson M

    2018-01-01

    Abstract Many stand-alone desktop software suites exist to visualize single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) diversity, but web-based software that can be easily implemented and used for biological databases is absent. SNPversity was created to answer this need by building an open-source visualization tool that can be implemented on a Unix-like machine and served through a web browser that can be accessible worldwide. SNPversity consists of a HDF5 database back-end for SNPs, a data exchange layer powered by TASSEL libraries that represent data in JSON format, and an interface layer using PHP to visualize SNP information. SNPversity displays data in real-time through a web browser in grids that are color-coded according to a given SNP’s allelic status and mutational state. SNPversity is currently available at MaizeGDB, the maize community’s database, and will be soon available at GrainGenes, the clade-oriented database for Triticeae and Avena species, including wheat, barley, rye, and oat. The code and documentation are uploaded onto github, and they are freely available to the public. We expect that the tool will be highly useful for other biological databases with a similar need to display SNP diversity through their web interfaces. Database URL: https://www.maizegdb.org/snpversity PMID:29688387

  18. So You Wanna Be a Web Author?

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Buchanan, Larry

    1996-01-01

    Defines HyperText Markup Language (HTML) as it relates to the World Wide Web (WWW). Describes steps needed to create HTML files on a UNIX system and to make them accessible via the WWW. Presents a list of basic HTML formatting codes and explains the coding used in the author's personal HTML file. (JMV)

  19. The Web Measurement Environment (WebME): A Tool for Combining and Modeling Distributed Data

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Tesoriero, Roseanne; Zelkowitz, Marvin

    1997-01-01

    Many organizations have incorporated data collection into their software processes for the purpose of process improvement. However, in order to improve, interpreting the data is just as important as the collection of data. With the increased presence of the Internet and the ubiquity of the World Wide Web, the potential for software processes being distributed among several physically separated locations has also grown. Because project data may be stored in multiple locations and in differing formats, obtaining and interpreting data from this type of environment becomes even more complicated. The Web Measurement Environment (WebME), a Web-based data visualization tool, is being developed to facilitate the understanding of collected data in a distributed environment. The WebME system will permit the analysis of development data in distributed, heterogeneous environments. This paper provides an overview of the system and its capabilities.

  20. Evaluating Digital Authoring Tools

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Wilde, Russ

    2004-01-01

    As the quality of authoring software increases, online course developers become less reliant on proprietary learning management systems, and develop skills in the design of original, in-house materials and the delivery platforms for them. This report examines the capabilities of digital authoring software tools for the development of learning…

  1. PACS project management utilizing web-based tools

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Patel, Sunil; Levin, Brad; Gac, Robert J., Jr.; Harding, Douglas, Jr.; Chacko, Anna K.; Radvany, Martin; Romlein, John R.

    2000-05-01

    As Picture Archiving and Communications Systems (PACS) implementations become more widespread, the management of deploying large, multi-facility PACS will become a more frequent occurrence. The tools and usability of the World Wide Web to disseminate project management information obviates time, distance, participant availability, and data format constraints, allowing for the effective collection and dissemination of PACS planning, implementation information, for a potentially limitless number of concurrent PACS sites. This paper will speak to tools, such as (1) a topic specific discussion board, (2) a 'restricted' Intranet, within a 'project' Intranet. We will also discuss project specific methods currently in use in a leading edge, regional PACS implementation concerning the sharing of project schedules, physical drawings, images of implementations, site-specific data, point of contacts lists, project milestones, and a general project overview. The individual benefits realized for the end user from each tool will also be covered. These details will be presented, balanced with a spotlight on communication as a critical component of any project management undertaking. Using today's technology, the web arguably provides the most cost and resource effective vehicle to facilitate the broad based, interactive sharing of project information.

  2. DECOMP: a PDB decomposition tool on the web.

    PubMed

    Ordog, Rafael; Szabadka, Zoltán; Grolmusz, Vince

    2009-07-27

    The protein databank (PDB) contains high quality structural data for computational structural biology investigations. We have earlier described a fast tool (the decomp_pdb tool) for identifying and marking missing atoms and residues in PDB files. The tool also automatically decomposes PDB entries into separate files describing ligands and polypeptide chains. Here, we describe a web interface named DECOMP for the tool. Our program correctly identifies multi-monomer ligands, and the server also offers the preprocessed ligand-protein decomposition of the complete PDB for downloading (up to size: 5GB) AVAILABILITY: http://decomp.pitgroup.org.

  3. Using Web-Based Technologies and Tools in Future Choreographers' Training: British Experience

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Bidyuk, Dmytro

    2016-01-01

    In the paper the problem of using effective web-based technologies and tools in teaching choreography in British higher education institutions has been discussed. Researches on the usage of web-based technologies and tools for practical dance courses in choreographers' professional training at British higher education institutions by such British…

  4. Use of Web 2.0 tools by hospital pharmacists.

    PubMed

    Bonaga Serrano, B; Aldaz Francés, R; Garrigues Sebastiá, M R; Hernández San Salvador, M

    2014-04-01

    Web 2.0 tools are transforming the pathways health professionals use to communicate among themselves and with their patients so this situation forces a change of mind to implement them. The aim of our study is to assess the state of knowledge of the main Web 2.0 applications and how are used in a sample of hospital pharmacists. The study was carried out through an anonymous survey to all members of the Spanish Society of Hospital Pharmacy (SEFH) by means of a questionnaire sent by the Google Drive® application. After the 3-month study period was completed, collected data were compiled and then analyzed using SPPS v15.0. The response rate was 7.3%, being 70.5% female and 76.3% specialists. The majority of respondents (54.2%) were aged 20 to 35. Pubmed was the main way of accessing published articles. 65.2% of pharmacists knew the term "Web 2.0". 45.3% pharmacists were Twitter users and over 58.9% mainly for professional purposes. Most pharmacists believed that Twitter was a good tool to interact with professionals and patients. 78.7% do not use an agregator, but when used, Google Reader was the most common. Although Web 2.0 applications are gaining mainstream popularity some health professionals may resist using them. In fact, more than a half of surveyed pharmacists referred a lack of knowledge about Web 2.0 tools. It would be positive for pharmacists to use them properly during their professional practice to get the best out of them. Copyright AULA MEDICA EDICIONES 2014. Published by AULA MEDICA. All rights reserved.

  5. The Astronomy Workshop Extragalactic: Web Tools for Use by Students

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Hayes-Gehrke, Melissa N.; Bolatto, A. D.

    2014-01-01

    The Astronomy Workshop Extragalactic (http://carma.astro.umd.edu/AWE) is a collection of interactive web tools that were developed for use in undergraduate and high school classes and by the general public. The focus of the tools is on concepts encountered in extragalactic astronomy, which are typically quite difficult for students to understand. Current tools explore Olbers' Paradox; the appearance of galaxies in different wavelengths of light; the Doppler Effect; cosmological redshift; gravitational lensing; Hubble's Law; cosmological parameters; and measuring masses of black holes by observing stellar orbits. The tools have been developed by undergraduate students under our supervision and we are planning to continue to add more tools. This project was inspired by the Astronomy Workshop (http://janus.astro.umd.edu) by Doug Hamilton which has web tools exploring more general astronomical concepts. We would like to thank the NSF for support through the CAREER grant NSF-AST0955836, and the Research Corporation for Science Advancement for a Cottrell Scholar award.

  6. Experimental evaluation of the impact of packet capturing tools for web services.

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

    Choe, Yung Ryn; Mohapatra, Prasant; Chuah, Chen-Nee

    Network measurement is a discipline that provides the techniques to collect data that are fundamental to many branches of computer science. While many capturing tools and comparisons have made available in the literature and elsewhere, the impact of these packet capturing tools on existing processes have not been thoroughly studied. While not a concern for collection methods in which dedicated servers are used, many usage scenarios of packet capturing now requires the packet capturing tool to run concurrently with operational processes. In this work we perform experimental evaluations of the performance impact that packet capturing process have on web-based services;more » in particular, we observe the impact on web servers. We find that packet capturing processes indeed impact the performance of web servers, but on a multi-core system the impact varies depending on whether the packet capturing and web hosting processes are co-located or not. In addition, the architecture and behavior of the web server and process scheduling is coupled with the behavior of the packet capturing process, which in turn also affect the web server's performance.« less

  7. A Good Teaching Technique: WebQuests

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Halat, Erdogan

    2008-01-01

    In this article, the author first introduces and describes a new teaching tool called WebQuests to practicing teachers. He then provides detailed information about the structure of a good WebQuest. Third, the author shows the strengths and weaknesses of using Web-Quests in teaching and learning. Last, he points out the challenges for practicing…

  8. An interactive, web-based tool for learning anatomic landmarks.

    PubMed

    Hallgren, Richard C; Parkhurst, Perrin E; Monson, Carol L; Crewe, Nancy M

    2002-03-01

    To evaluate the effectiveness of a Web-based interactive teaching tool that uses self-assessment exercises with real-time feedback to aid students' learning in a gross anatomy class. A total of 107 of 124 first-year medical students at one school were enrolled in the study. Students were divided into three groups: Group 1 (n = 63) received introductory material and activated their Web-based accounts; Group 2 (n = 44) received introductory material but did not activate their Web-based accounts; and Group 3 (n = 17) were not enrolled in the study and received no introductory material. Students in Group 1 had access to a graphic showing the locations of anatomic landmarks, a drill exercise, and a self-evaluation exercise. Students' ability to identify the anatomic landmarks on a 30-question midterm and a 30-question final exam were compared among the groups. The mean scores of students in Group 1 (midterm = 28.5, final = 28.1) were significantly higher than were the mean scores of students in Group 2 (midterm = 26.8, p <.001; final = 26.9, p <.017) and Group 3 (midterm = 24.8, p <.001; final = 26.4, p <.007). The Web-based tool was effective in improving students' scores on anatomic landmark exams. Future studies will determine whether the tool aids students in identifying structures located in three-dimensional space within regions such as the cranium and the abdominal cavity.

  9. Older Cancer Patients’ User Experiences With Web-Based Health Information Tools: A Think-Aloud Study

    PubMed Central

    Romijn, Geke; Smets, Ellen M A; Loos, Eugene F; Kunneman, Marleen; van Weert, Julia C M

    2016-01-01

    Background Health information is increasingly presented on the Internet. Several Web design guidelines for older Web users have been proposed; however, these guidelines are often not applied in website development. Furthermore, although we know that older individuals use the Internet to search for health information, we lack knowledge on how they use and evaluate Web-based health information. Objective This study evaluates user experiences with existing Web-based health information tools among older (≥ 65 years) cancer patients and survivors and their partners. The aim was to gain insight into usability issues and the perceived usefulness of cancer-related Web-based health information tools. Methods We conducted video-recorded think-aloud observations for 7 Web-based health information tools, specifically 3 websites providing cancer-related information, 3 Web-based question prompt lists (QPLs), and 1 values clarification tool, with colorectal cancer patients or survivors (n=15) and their partners (n=8) (median age: 73; interquartile range 70-79). Participants were asked to think aloud while performing search, evaluation, and application tasks using the Web-based health information tools. Results Overall, participants perceived Web-based health information tools as highly useful and indicated a willingness to use such tools. However, they experienced problems in terms of usability and perceived usefulness due to difficulties in using navigational elements, shortcomings in the layout, a lack of instructions on how to use the tools, difficulties with comprehensibility, and a large amount of variety in terms of the preferred amount of information. Although participants frequently commented that it was easy for them to find requested information, we observed that the large majority of the participants were not able to find it. Conclusions Overall, older cancer patients appreciate and are able to use cancer information websites. However, this study shows the importance

  10. pgRNAFinder: a web-based tool to design distance independent paired-gRNA.

    PubMed

    Xiong, Yuanyan; Xie, Xiaowei; Wang, Yanzhi; Ma, Wenbing; Liang, Puping; Songyang, Zhou; Dai, Zhiming

    2017-11-15

    The CRISPR/Cas System has been shown to be an efficient and accurate genome-editing technique. There exist a number of tools to design the guide RNA sequences and predict potential off-target sites. However, most of the existing computational tools on gRNA design are restricted to small deletions. To address this issue, we present pgRNAFinder, with an easy-to-use web interface, which enables researchers to design single or distance-free paired-gRNA sequences. The web interface of pgRNAFinder contains both gRNA search and scoring system. After users input query sequences, it searches gRNA by 3' protospacer-adjacent motif (PAM), and possible off-targets, and scores the conservation of the deleted sequences rapidly. Filters can be applied to identify high-quality CRISPR sites. PgRNAFinder offers gRNA design functionality for 8 vertebrate genomes. Furthermore, to keep pgRNAFinder open, extensible to any organism, we provide the source package for local use. The pgRNAFinder is freely available at http://songyanglab.sysu.edu.cn/wangwebs/pgRNAFinder/, and the source code and user manual can be obtained from https://github.com/xiexiaowei/pgRNAFinder. songyang@bcm.edu or daizhim@mail.sysu.edu.cn. Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online. © The Author(s) 2017. Published by Oxford University Press.

  11. Analytical Web Tool for CERES Products

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Mitrescu, C.; Chu, C.; Doelling, D.

    2012-12-01

    The CERES project provides the community climate quality observed TOA fluxes, consistent cloud properties, and computed profile and surface fluxes. The 11-year long data set proves invaluable for remote sensing and climate modeling communities for annual global mean energy, meridianal heat transport, consistent cloud and fluxes and climate trends studies. Moreover, a broader audience interested in Earth's radiative properties such as green energy, health and environmental companies have showed their interest in CERES derived products. A few years ago, the CERES team start developing a new web-based Ordering Tool tailored for this wide diversity of users. Recognizing the potential that web-2.0 technologies can offer to both Quality Control (QC) and scientific data visualization and manipulation, the CERES team began introducing a series of specialized functions that addresses the above. As such, displaying an attractive, easy to use modern web-based format, the Ordering Tool added the following analytical functions: i) 1-D Histograms to display the distribution of the data field to identify outliers that are useful for QC purposes; ii) an "Anomaly" map that shows the regional differences between the current month and the climatological monthly mean; iii) a 2-D Histogram that can identify either potential problems with the data (i.e. QC function) or provides a global view of trends and/or correlations between various CERES flux, cloud, aerosol, and atmospheric properties. The large volume and diversity of data, together with the on-the-fly execution were the main challenges that had to be tackle with. Depending on the application, the execution was done on either the browser side or the server side with the help of auxiliary files. Additional challenges came from the use of various open source applications, the multitude of CERES products and the seamless transition from previous development. For the future, we plan on expanding the analytical capabilities of the

  12. K-12 Student Use of Web 2.0 Tools: A Global Study

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Toledo, Cheri; Shepard, MaryFriend

    2011-01-01

    Over the past decade, Internet use has increased 445% worldwide. This boom has enabled widespread access to online tools and digital spaces for educational practices. The results of this study of Web 2.0 tool use in kindergarten through high school (K-12) classrooms around the world will be presented. A web-based survey was sent out through online…

  13. Comprehensive Analysis of Semantic Web Reasoners and Tools: A Survey

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Khamparia, Aditya; Pandey, Babita

    2017-01-01

    Ontologies are emerging as best representation techniques for knowledge based context domains. The continuing need for interoperation, collaboration and effective information retrieval has lead to the creation of semantic web with the help of tools and reasoners which manages personalized information. The future of semantic web lies in an ontology…

  14. GREAT: a web portal for Genome Regulatory Architecture Tools

    PubMed Central

    Bouyioukos, Costas; Bucchini, François; Elati, Mohamed; Képès, François

    2016-01-01

    GREAT (Genome REgulatory Architecture Tools) is a novel web portal for tools designed to generate user-friendly and biologically useful analysis of genome architecture and regulation. The online tools of GREAT are freely accessible and compatible with essentially any operating system which runs a modern browser. GREAT is based on the analysis of genome layout -defined as the respective positioning of co-functional genes- and its relation with chromosome architecture and gene expression. GREAT tools allow users to systematically detect regular patterns along co-functional genomic features in an automatic way consisting of three individual steps and respective interactive visualizations. In addition to the complete analysis of regularities, GREAT tools enable the use of periodicity and position information for improving the prediction of transcription factor binding sites using a multi-view machine learning approach. The outcome of this integrative approach features a multivariate analysis of the interplay between the location of a gene and its regulatory sequence. GREAT results are plotted in web interactive graphs and are available for download either as individual plots, self-contained interactive pages or as machine readable tables for downstream analysis. The GREAT portal can be reached at the following URL https://absynth.issb.genopole.fr/GREAT and each individual GREAT tool is available for downloading. PMID:27151196

  15. Faculty Recommendations for Web Tools: Implications for Course Management Systems

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Oliver, Kevin; Moore, John

    2008-01-01

    A gap analysis of web tools in Engineering was undertaken as one part of the Digital Library Network for Engineering and Technology (DLNET) grant funded by NSF (DUE-0085849). DLNET represents a Web portal and an online review process to archive quality knowledge objects in Engineering and Technology disciplines. The gap analysis coincided with the…

  16. Web 2.0 Tools for Supporting Teaching

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Konstantinidis, Angelos; Theodostadou, Dimitra; Pappos, Christos

    2013-01-01

    Web 2.0 tools provide enormous opportunities for teaching and learning, yet their application in education is still underdeveloped. What is more, it is no longer possible for teachers to ignore such a technological advance, while they are expected to provide students with opportunities to take control of their learning. However, teachers are still…

  17. Examining Web 2.0 Tools Usage of Science Teacher Candidates

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Balkan Kiyici, Fatime

    2012-01-01

    Using technology in a science teaching is so important. Only the person, who can use these tools in expert level, can use these tools in their teaching activities. In this research it is aimed firstly identifying science teacher candidates web 2.0 tools usage experience level and factors affecting experience level. In this research survey method…

  18. Web-based routing assistance tool to reduce pavement damage by overweight and oversize vehicles.

    DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

    2016-10-30

    This report documents the results of a completed project titled Web-Based Routing Assistance Tool to Reduce Pavement Damage by Overweight and Oversize Vehicles. The tasks involved developing a Web-based GIS routing assistance tool and evaluate ...

  19. A WebGL Tool for Visualizing the Topology of the Sun's Coronal Magnetic Field

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Duffy, A.; Cheung, C.; DeRosa, M. L.

    2012-12-01

    We present a web-based, topology-viewing tool that allows users to visualize the geometry and topology of the Sun's 3D coronal magnetic field in an interactive manner. The tool is implemented using, open-source, mature, modern web technologies including WebGL, jQuery, HTML 5, and CSS 3, which are compatible with nearly all modern web browsers. As opposed to the traditional method of visualization, which involves the downloading and setup of various software packages-proprietary and otherwise-the tool presents a clean interface that allows the user to easily load and manipulate the model, while also offering great power to choose which topological features are displayed. The tool accepts data encoded in the JSON open format that has libraries available for nearly every major programming language, making it simple to generate the data.

  20. A web-based endodontic case difficulty assessment tool.

    PubMed

    Shah, P K; Chong, B S

    2018-07-01

    To develop a web-based tool to facilitate identification, evaluation and management of teeth requiring endodontic treatment. Following a literature search and thorough analysis of existing case difficulty assessment forms, the web-based tool was developed using an online survey builder (Qualtrics, Qualtrics Lab, UT, USA). Following feedback from a pilot study, it was refined and improved. A study was performed, using the updated version (EndoApp) on a cohort (n = 53) of dental professionals and dental students. The participants were e-mailed instructions detailing the assessment of five test cases using EndoApp, followed by completion of a structured feedback form. Analysis of the EndoApp responses was used to evaluate usage times, whereas the results of the feedback forms were used to assess user experience and relevance, other potential applications and comments on further improvement/s. The average usage time was 2 min 7 s; the average times needed for the last three (Cases 3-5) were significantly less than the preceding two (Cases 1 & 2) test cases. An overwhelming majority of participants expressed favourable views on user experience and relevance of the web-based case difficulty assessment tool. Only two participants (4%) were unlikely or very unlikely to use EndoApp again. The potential application of EndoApp as an 'educational tool' and for 'primary care triage' was deemed the most popular features and of greater importance than the secondary options of 'fee setting' and as a 'dento-legal justification tool'. Within the study limitations, owing to its ability to quantify the level of difficulty and provide guidance, EndoApp was considered user-friendly and helped facilitate endodontic case difficulty assessment. From the feedback, further improvements and the development of a Smartphone App version are in progress. EndoApp may facilitate treatment planning, improve treatment cost-effectiveness and reduce frequency of procedural errors by providing

  1. Navigating complex patients using an innovative tool: the MTM Spider Web.

    PubMed

    Morello, Candis M; Hirsch, Jan D; Lee, Kelly C

    2013-01-01

    To introduce a teaching tool that can be used to assess the complexity of medication therapy management (MTM) patients, prioritize appropriate interventions, and design patient-centered care plans for each encounter. MTM patients are complex as a result of multiple comorbidities, medications, and socioeconomic and behavioral issues. Pharmacists who provide MTM services are required to synthesize a plethora of information (medical and nonmedical), evaluate and prioritize the clinical problems, and design a comprehensive patient-centered care plan. The MTM Spider Web is a visual tool to facilitate this process. A description is provided regarding how to build the MTM Spider Web using case-based scenarios. This model can be used to teach pharmacists, health professional students, and patients. The MTM Spider Web is an innovative teaching tool that can be used to teach pharmacists and students how to assess complex patients and design a patient-centered care plan to deliver the most appropriate medication therapy.

  2. Hydrogen Financial Analysis Scenario Tool (H2FAST). Web Tool User's Manual

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

    Bush, B.; Penev, M.; Melaina, M.

    The Hydrogen Financial Analysis Scenario Tool (H2FAST) provides a quick and convenient indepth financial analysis for hydrogen fueling stations. This manual describes how to use the H2FAST web tool, which is one of three H2FAST formats developed by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL). Although all of the formats are based on the same financial computations and conform to generally accepted accounting principles (FASAB 2014, Investopedia 2014), each format provides a different level of complexity and user interactivity.

  3. Patient-oriented interactive E-health tools on U.S. hospital Web sites.

    PubMed

    Huang, Edgar; Chang, Chiu-Chi Angela

    2012-01-01

    The purpose of this study is to provide evidence for strategic planning regarding e-health development in U.S. hospitals. A content analysis of a representative sample of the U.S. hospital Web sites has revealed how U.S. hospitals have taken advantage of the 21 patient-oriented interactive tools identified in this study. Significant gaps between various types of hospitals have also been found. It is concluded that although the majority of the U.S. hospitals have adopted traditional functional tools, they need to make significant inroad in implementing the core e-business tools to serve their patients/users, making their Web sites more efficient marketing tools.

  4. miTRATA: a web-based tool for microRNA Truncation and Tailing Analysis.

    PubMed

    Patel, Parth; Ramachandruni, S Deepthi; Kakrana, Atul; Nakano, Mayumi; Meyers, Blake C

    2016-02-01

    We describe miTRATA, the first web-based tool for microRNA Truncation and Tailing Analysis--the analysis of 3' modifications of microRNAs including the loss or gain of nucleotides relative to the canonical sequence. miTRATA is implemented in Python (version 3) and employs parallel processing modules to enhance its scalability when analyzing multiple small RNA (sRNA) sequencing datasets. It utilizes miRBase, currently version 21, as a source of known microRNAs for analysis. miTRATA notifies user(s) via email to download as well as visualize the results online. miTRATA's strengths lie in (i) its biologist-focused web interface, (ii) improved scalability via parallel processing and (iii) its uniqueness as a webtool to perform microRNA truncation and tailing analysis. miTRATA is developed in Python and PHP. It is available as a web-based application from https://wasabi.dbi.udel.edu/∼apps/ta/. meyers@dbi.udel.edu Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online. © The Author 2015. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

  5. Web Surveys to Digital Movies: Technological Tools of the Trade.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Fetterman, David M.

    2002-01-01

    Highlights some of the technological tools used by educational researchers today, focusing on data collection related tools such as Web surveys, digital photography, voice recognition and transcription, file sharing and virtual office, videoconferencing on the Internet, instantaneous chat and chat rooms, reporting and dissemination, and digital…

  6. AAVSO Target Tool: A Web-Based Service for Tracking Variable Star Observations (Abstract)

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Burger, D.; Stassun, K. G.; Barnes, C.; Kafka, S.; Beck, S.; Li, K.

    2018-06-01

    (Abstract only) The AAVSO Target Tool is a web-based interface for bringing stars in need of observation to the attention of AAVSOís network of amateur and professional astronomers. The site currently tracks over 700 targets of interest, collecting data from them on a regular basis from AAVSOís servers and sorting them based on priority. While the target tool does not require a login, users can obtain visibility times for each target by signing up and entering a telescope location. Other key features of the site include filtering by AAVSO observing section, sorting by different variable types, formatting the data for printing, and exporting the data to a CSV file. The AAVSO Target Tool builds upon seven years of experience developing web applications for astronomical data analysis, most notably on Filtergraph (Burger, D., et al. 2013, Astronomical Data Analysis Software and Systems XXII, Astronomical Society of the Pacific, San Francisco, 399), and is built using the web2py web framework based on the python programming language. The target tool is available at http://filtergraph.com/aavso.

  7. Reusable science tools for analog exploration missions: xGDS Web Tools, VERVE, and Gigapan Voyage

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Lee, Susan Y.; Lees, David; Cohen, Tamar; Allan, Mark; Deans, Matthew; Morse, Theodore; Park, Eric; Smith, Trey

    2013-10-01

    The Exploration Ground Data Systems (xGDS) project led by the Intelligent Robotics Group (IRG) at NASA Ames Research Center creates software tools to support multiple NASA-led planetary analog field experiments. The two primary tools that fall under the xGDS umbrella are the xGDS Web Tools (xGDS-WT) and Visual Environment for Remote Virtual Exploration (VERVE). IRG has also developed a hardware and software system that is closely integrated with our xGDS tools and is used in multiple field experiments called Gigapan Voyage. xGDS-WT, VERVE, and Gigapan Voyage are examples of IRG projects that improve the ratio of science return versus development effort by creating generic and reusable tools that leverage existing technologies in both hardware and software. xGDS Web Tools provides software for gathering and organizing mission data for science and engineering operations, including tools for planning traverses, monitoring autonomous or piloted vehicles, visualization, documentation, analysis, and search. VERVE provides high performance three dimensional (3D) user interfaces used by scientists, robot operators, and mission planners to visualize robot data in real time. Gigapan Voyage is a gigapixel image capturing and processing tool that improves situational awareness and scientific exploration in human and robotic analog missions. All of these technologies emphasize software reuse and leverage open source and/or commercial-off-the-shelf tools to greatly improve the utility and reduce the development and operational cost of future similar technologies. Over the past several years these technologies have been used in many NASA-led robotic field campaigns including the Desert Research and Technology Studies (DRATS), the Pavilion Lake Research Project (PLRP), the K10 Robotic Follow-Up tests, and most recently we have become involved in the NASA Extreme Environment Mission Operations (NEEMO) field experiments. A major objective of these joint robot and crew experiments is

  8. Scaling Up: From Web-Enhanced Courses to a Web-Enhanced Curriculum

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Wood, Robert E.

    2004-01-01

    In the past decade, the most important technological innovation in higher education has been the enhancement of academic courses with Web-based information and tools. Given the success and popularity of numerous Web-based innovations, the author and two colleagues wondered whether the benefits of technology use could be scaled up from the course…

  9. enoLOGOS: a versatile web tool for energy normalized sequence logos

    PubMed Central

    Workman, Christopher T.; Yin, Yutong; Corcoran, David L.; Ideker, Trey; Stormo, Gary D.; Benos, Panayiotis V.

    2005-01-01

    enoLOGOS is a web-based tool that generates sequence logos from various input sources. Sequence logos have become a popular way to graphically represent DNA and amino acid sequence patterns from a set of aligned sequences. Each position of the alignment is represented by a column of stacked symbols with its total height reflecting the information content in this position. Currently, the available web servers are able to create logo images from a set of aligned sequences, but none of them generates weighted sequence logos directly from energy measurements or other sources. With the advent of high-throughput technologies for estimating the contact energy of different DNA sequences, tools that can create logos directly from binding affinity data are useful to researchers. enoLOGOS generates sequence logos from a variety of input data, including energy measurements, probability matrices, alignment matrices, count matrices and aligned sequences. Furthermore, enoLOGOS can represent the mutual information of different positions of the consensus sequence, a unique feature of this tool. Another web interface for our software, C2H2-enoLOGOS, generates logos for the DNA-binding preferences of the C2H2 zinc-finger transcription factor family members. enoLOGOS and C2H2-enoLOGOS are accessible over the web at . PMID:15980495

  10. 78 FR 54241 - Proposed Information Collection; Comment Request; BroadbandMatch Web Site Tool

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2013-09-03

    ... Information Collection; Comment Request; BroadbandMatch Web Site Tool AGENCY: National Telecommunications and... goal of increased broadband deployment and use in the United States. The BroadbandMatch Web site began... empowering technology effectively. II. Method of Collection BroadbandMatch users access the Web site through...

  11. TrawlerWeb: an online de novo motif discovery tool for next-generation sequencing datasets.

    PubMed

    Dang, Louis T; Tondl, Markus; Chiu, Man Ho H; Revote, Jerico; Paten, Benedict; Tano, Vincent; Tokolyi, Alex; Besse, Florence; Quaife-Ryan, Greg; Cumming, Helen; Drvodelic, Mark J; Eichenlaub, Michael P; Hallab, Jeannette C; Stolper, Julian S; Rossello, Fernando J; Bogoyevitch, Marie A; Jans, David A; Nim, Hieu T; Porrello, Enzo R; Hudson, James E; Ramialison, Mirana

    2018-04-05

    A strong focus of the post-genomic era is mining of the non-coding regulatory genome in order to unravel the function of regulatory elements that coordinate gene expression (Nat 489:57-74, 2012; Nat 507:462-70, 2014; Nat 507:455-61, 2014; Nat 518:317-30, 2015). Whole-genome approaches based on next-generation sequencing (NGS) have provided insight into the genomic location of regulatory elements throughout different cell types, organs and organisms. These technologies are now widespread and commonly used in laboratories from various fields of research. This highlights the need for fast and user-friendly software tools dedicated to extracting cis-regulatory information contained in these regulatory regions; for instance transcription factor binding site (TFBS) composition. Ideally, such tools should not require prior programming knowledge to ensure they are accessible for all users. We present TrawlerWeb, a web-based version of the Trawler_standalone tool (Nat Methods 4:563-5, 2007; Nat Protoc 5:323-34, 2010), to allow for the identification of enriched motifs in DNA sequences obtained from next-generation sequencing experiments in order to predict their TFBS composition. TrawlerWeb is designed for online queries with standard options common to web-based motif discovery tools. In addition, TrawlerWeb provides three unique new features: 1) TrawlerWeb allows the input of BED files directly generated from NGS experiments, 2) it automatically generates an input-matched biologically relevant background, and 3) it displays resulting conservation scores for each instance of the motif found in the input sequences, which assists the researcher in prioritising the motifs to validate experimentally. Finally, to date, this web-based version of Trawler_standalone remains the fastest online de novo motif discovery tool compared to other popular web-based software, while generating predictions with high accuracy. TrawlerWeb provides users with a fast, simple and easy-to-use web

  12. e-CDRweb User Guide – Secondary Authorized Official

    EPA Pesticide Factsheets

    This document presents the user guide for the Office of Pollution Prevention and Toxics’ (OPPT) e-CDRweb tool. E-CDRweb is the electronic, web-based tool provided by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for the submission of Chemical Data Reporting (CDR) information. This document is the user guide for the Secondary Authorized Official (AO) user of the e-CDR web tool.

  13. Free and Easy to Use Web Based Presentation and Classroom Tools

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Jensen, Jennifer; Tunon, Johanna

    2012-01-01

    A number of free Web-based tools are available for distance librarians to create presentations and online assignments. The relative merits of presentation tools like Dabbleboard, Jing, Prezi, Tildee, 280 Slides, and Glogster, and classroom tools like Make Beliefs Comix, Picviewer, Photopeach, and Wordle are assessed for ease of use by distance…

  14. The Adversarial Route Analysis Tool: A Web Application

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

    Casson, William H. Jr.

    2012-08-02

    The Adversarial Route Analysis Tool is a type of Google maps for adversaries. It's a web-based Geospatial application similar to Google Maps. It helps the U.S. government plan operations that predict where an adversary might be. It's easily accessible and maintainble and it's simple to use without much training.

  15. A survey of motif finding Web tools for detecting binding site motifs in ChIP-Seq data

    PubMed Central

    2014-01-01

    Abstract ChIP-Seq (chromatin immunoprecipitation sequencing) has provided the advantage for finding motifs as ChIP-Seq experiments narrow down the motif finding to binding site locations. Recent motif finding tools facilitate the motif detection by providing user-friendly Web interface. In this work, we reviewed nine motif finding Web tools that are capable for detecting binding site motifs in ChIP-Seq data. We showed each motif finding Web tool has its own advantages for detecting motifs that other tools may not discover. We recommended the users to use multiple motif finding Web tools that implement different algorithms for obtaining significant motifs, overlapping resemble motifs, and non-overlapping motifs. Finally, we provided our suggestions for future development of motif finding Web tool that better assists researchers for finding motifs in ChIP-Seq data. Reviewers This article was reviewed by Prof. Sandor Pongor, Dr. Yuriy Gusev, and Dr. Shyam Prabhakar (nominated by Prof. Limsoon Wong). PMID:24555784

  16. PathScore: a web tool for identifying altered pathways in cancer data.

    PubMed

    Gaffney, Stephen G; Townsend, Jeffrey P

    2016-12-01

    PathScore quantifies the level of enrichment of somatic mutations within curated pathways, applying a novel approach that identifies pathways enriched across patients. The application provides several user-friendly, interactive graphic interfaces for data exploration, including tools for comparing pathway effect sizes, significance, gene-set overlap and enrichment differences between projects. Web application available at pathscore.publichealth.yale.edu. Site implemented in Python and MySQL, with all major browsers supported. Source code available at: github.com/sggaffney/pathscore with a GPLv3 license. stephen.gaffney@yale.edu. © The Author 2016. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

  17. A web tool for STORET/WQX water quality data retrieval and Best Management Practice scenario suggestion.

    PubMed

    Park, Youn Shik; Engel, Bernie A; Kim, Jonggun; Theller, Larry; Chaubey, Indrajeet; Merwade, Venkatesh; Lim, Kyoung Jae

    2015-03-01

    Total Maximum Daily Load is a water quality standard to regulate water quality of streams, rivers and lakes. A wide range of approaches are used currently to develop TMDLs for impaired streams and rivers. Flow and load duration curves (FDC and LDC) have been used in many states to evaluate the relationship between flow and pollutant loading along with other models and approaches. A web-based LDC Tool was developed to facilitate development of FDC and LDC as well as to support other hydrologic analyses. In this study, the FDC and LDC tool was enhanced to allow collection of water quality data via the web and to assist in establishing cost-effective Best Management Practice (BMP) implementations. The enhanced web-based tool provides use of water quality data not only from the US Geological Survey but also from the Water Quality Portal for the U.S. via web access. Moreover, the web-based tool identifies required pollutant reductions to meet standard loads and suggests a BMP scenario based on ability of BMPs to reduce pollutant loads, BMP establishment and maintenance costs. In the study, flow and water quality data were collected via web access to develop LDC and to identify the required reduction. The suggested BMP scenario from the web-based tool was evaluated using the EPA Spreadsheet Tool for the Estimation of Pollutant Load model to attain the required pollutant reduction at least cost. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  18. Web-site evaluation tools: a case study in reproductive health information.

    PubMed

    Aslani, Azam; Pournik, Omid; Abu-Hanna, Ameen; Eslami, Saeid

    2014-01-01

    Internet forms an opportunity to inform, teach, and connect professionals and patients. However, much information on Internet is incomplete, inaccurate, or misleading, and not only in the medical domain. Because of the potential for damage from misleading and inaccurate health information, many organizations and individuals have published or implemented scoring tools for evaluating the appropriateness or quality of these resources. The objective of this study is to identify and summarize scoring tools that have evaluated web-sites providing reproductive health information in order to compare them and recommend an overarching evaluation tool. We searched Ovid MEDLINE(R) (1946 to July 2013) and OVID Embase (1980 to July 2013); and included English language studies that have evaluated the quality of websites providing reproductive health information. Studies only assessing the content of websites were excluded. We identified 5 scoring tools: 1-The HON (health on the net) Code of Conduct for medical and health Web sites, 2-Silberg scores, 3-Hogne Sandvik scale, 4-Jim Kapoun's Criteria for Evaluating Web Pages, and 5-The Health Information Technology Institute (HITI) criteria. We have compared these scales and identified 14 criteria: authorship, ownership, currency, objectivity/content, transparency/source, interactivity, privacy/ethics, financial disclosure, navigability/links, complementarity, advertising policy, design, quantity, and accessibility. We integrated these criteria and introduced a new tool with 10 criteria. Website evaluation tools differ in their evaluation criteria and there is a lack of consensus about which to use; therefore, an integrated easy to use set of criteria is needed.

  19. REopt Lite Web Tool Evaluates Photovoltaics and Battery Storage

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

    Building on the success of the REopt renewable energy integration and optimization platform, NREL has developed a free, publicly available web version of REopt called REopt Lite. REopt Lite evaluates the economics of grid-connected photovoltaics (PV) and battery storage at a site. It allows building owners to identify the system sizes and battery dispatch strategy that minimize their life cycle cost of energy. This web tool also estimates the amount of time a PV and storage system can sustain the site's critical load during a grid outage.

  20. webMGR: an online tool for the multiple genome rearrangement problem.

    PubMed

    Lin, Chi Ho; Zhao, Hao; Lowcay, Sean Harry; Shahab, Atif; Bourque, Guillaume

    2010-02-01

    The algorithm MGR enables the reconstruction of rearrangement phylogenies based on gene or synteny block order in multiple genomes. Although MGR has been successfully applied to study the evolution of different sets of species, its utilization has been hampered by the prohibitive running time for some applications. In the current work, we have designed new heuristics that significantly speed up the tool without compromising its accuracy. Moreover, we have developed a web server (webMGR) that includes elaborate web output to facilitate navigation through the results. webMGR can be accessed via http://www.gis.a-star.edu.sg/~bourque. The source code of the improved standalone version of MGR is also freely available from the web site. Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online.

  1. KnowledgePuzzle: A Browsing Tool to Adapt the Web Navigation Process to the Learner's Mental Model

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    AlAgha, Iyad

    2012-01-01

    This article presents KnowledgePuzzle, a browsing tool for knowledge construction from the web. It aims to adapt the structure of web content to the learner's information needs regardless of how the web content is originally delivered. Learners are provided with a meta-cognitive space (e.g., a concept mapping tool) that enables them to plan…

  2. Students' Perceptions of the Effectiveness of the World Wide Web as a Research and Teaching Tool in Science Learning.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Ng, Wan; Gunstone, Richard

    2002-01-01

    Investigates the use of the World Wide Web (WWW) as a research and teaching tool in promoting self-directed learning groups of 15-year-old students. Discusses the perceptions of students of the effectiveness of the WWW in assisting them with the construction of knowledge on photosynthesis and respiration. (Contains 33 references.) (Author/YDS)

  3. Web-Based Tools for Data Visualization and Decision Support for South Asia

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Jones, N.; Nelson, J.; Pulla, S. T.; Ames, D. P.; Souffront, M.; David, C. H.; Zaitchik, B. F.; Gatlin, P. N.; Matin, M. A.

    2017-12-01

    The objective of the NASA SERVIR project is to assist developing countries in using information provided by Earth observing satellites to assess and manage climate risks, land use, and water resources. We present a collection of web apps that integrate earth observations and in situ data to facilitate deployment of data and water resources models as decision-making tools in support of this effort. The interactive nature of web apps makes this an excellent medium for creating decision support tools that harness cutting edge modeling techniques. Thin client apps hosted in a cloud portal eliminates the need for the decision makers to procure and maintain the high performance hardware required by the models, deal with issues related to software installation and platform incompatibilities, or monitor and install software updates, a problem that is exacerbated for many of the regional SERVIR hubs where both financial and technical capacity may be limited. All that is needed to use the system is an Internet connection and a web browser. We take advantage of these technologies to develop tools which can be centrally maintained but openly accessible. Advanced mapping and visualization make results intuitive and information derived actionable. We also take advantage of the emerging standards for sharing water information across the web using the OGC and WMO approved WaterML standards. This makes our tools interoperable and extensible via application programming interfaces (APIs) so that tools and data from other projects can both consume and share the tools developed in our project. Our approach enables the integration of multiple types of data and models, thus facilitating collaboration between science teams in SERVIR. The apps developed thus far by our team process time-varying netCDF files from Earth observations and large-scale computer simulations and allow visualization and exploration via raster animation and extraction of time series at selected points and/or regions.

  4. ASK-LDT 2.0: A Web-Based Graphical Tool for Authoring Learning Designs

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Zervas, Panagiotis; Fragkos, Konstantinos; Sampson, Demetrios G.

    2013-01-01

    During the last decade, Open Educational Resources (OERs) have gained increased attention for their potential to support open access, sharing and reuse of digital educational resources. Therefore, a large amount of digital educational resources have become available worldwide through web-based open access repositories which are referred to as…

  5. Web Development Simplified

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Becker, Bernd W.

    2010-01-01

    The author has discussed the Multimedia Educational Resource for Teaching and Online Learning site, MERLOT, in a recent Electronic Roundup column. In this article, he discusses an entirely new Web page development tool that MERLOT has added for its members. The new tool is called the MERLOT Content Builder and is directly integrated into the…

  6. UceWeb: a web-based collaborative tool for collecting and sharing quality of life data.

    PubMed

    Parimbelli, E; Sacchi, L; Rubrichi, S; Mazzanti, A; Quaglini, S

    2015-01-01

    This work aims at building a platform where quality-of-life data, namely utility coefficients, can be elicited not only for immediate use, but also systematically stored together with patient profiles to build a public repository to be further exploited in studies on specific target populations (e.g. cost/utility analyses). We capitalized on utility theory and previous experience to define a set of desirable features such a tool should show to facilitate sound elicitation of quality of life. A set of visualization tools and algorithms has been developed to this purpose. To make it easily accessible for potential users, the software has been designed as a web application. A pilot validation study has been performed on 20 atrial fibrillation patients. A collaborative platform, UceWeb, has been developed and tested. It implements the standard gamble, time trade-off and rating-scale utility elicitation methods. It allows doctors and patients to choose the mode of interaction to maximize patients’ comfort in answering difficult questions. Every utility elicitation may contribute to the growth of the repository. UceWeb can become a unique source of data allowing researchers both to perform more reliable comparisons among healthcare interventions and build statistical models to gain deeper insight into quality of life data.

  7. The Availability of Web 2.0 Tools from Community College Libraries' Websites Serving Large Student Bodies

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Blummer, Barbara; Kenton, Jeffrey M.

    2014-01-01

    Web 2.0 tools offer academic libraries new avenues for delivering services and resources to students. In this research we report on a content analysis of 100 US community college libraries' Websites for the availability of Web 2.0 applications. We found Web 2.0 tools utilized by 97% of our sample population and many of these sites contained more…

  8. Web-Based Surveys Facilitate Undergraduate Research and Knowledge

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Grimes, Paul, Ed.; Steele, Scott R.

    2008-01-01

    The author presents Web-based surveying as a valuable tool for achieving quality undergraduate research in upper-level economics courses. Web-based surveys can be employed in efforts to integrate undergraduate research into the curriculum without overburdening students or faculty. The author discusses the value of undergraduate research, notes…

  9. A tool for improving the Web accessibility of visually handicapped persons.

    PubMed

    Fujiki, Tadayoshi; Hanada, Eisuke; Yamada, Tomomi; Noda, Yoshihiro; Antoku, Yasuaki; Nakashima, Naoki; Nose, Yoshiaki

    2006-04-01

    Abstract Much has been written concerning the difficulties faced by visually handicapped persons when they access the internet. To solve some of the problems and to make web pages more accessible, we developed a tool we call the "Easy Bar," which works as a toolbar on the web browser. The functions of the Easy Bar are to change the size of web texts and images, to adjust the color, and to clear cached data that is automatically saved by the web browser. These functions are executed with ease by clicking buttons and operating a pull-down list. Since the icons built into Easy Bar are quite large, it is not necessary for the user to deal with delicate operations. The functions of Easy Bar run on any web page without increasing the processing time. For the visually handicapped, Easy Bar would contribute greatly to improved web accessibility to medical information.

  10. Food Web Designer: a flexible tool to visualize interaction networks.

    PubMed

    Sint, Daniela; Traugott, Michael

    Species are embedded in complex networks of ecological interactions and assessing these networks provides a powerful approach to understand what the consequences of these interactions are for ecosystem functioning and services. This is mandatory to develop and evaluate strategies for the management and control of pests. Graphical representations of networks can help recognize patterns that might be overlooked otherwise. However, there is a lack of software which allows visualizing these complex interaction networks. Food Web Designer is a stand-alone, highly flexible and user friendly software tool to quantitatively visualize trophic and other types of bipartite and tripartite interaction networks. It is offered free of charge for use on Microsoft Windows platforms. Food Web Designer is easy to use without the need to learn a specific syntax due to its graphical user interface. Up to three (trophic) levels can be connected using links cascading from or pointing towards the taxa within each level to illustrate top-down and bottom-up connections. Link width/strength and abundance of taxa can be quantified, allowing generating fully quantitative networks. Network datasets can be imported, saved for later adjustment and the interaction webs can be exported as pictures for graphical display in different file formats. We show how Food Web Designer can be used to draw predator-prey and host-parasitoid food webs, demonstrating that this software is a simple and straightforward tool to graphically display interaction networks for assessing pest control or any other type of interaction in both managed and natural ecosystems from an ecological network perspective.

  11. Vocabulary Learning on Learner-Created Content by Using Web 2.0 Tools

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Eren, Omer

    2015-01-01

    The present research examined the use of Web 2.0 tools to improve students' vocabulary knowledge at the School of Foreign Languages, Gaziantep University. Current studies in literature mostly deal with descriptions of students' attitudes towards the reasons for the use of web-based platforms. However, integrating usual classroom environment with…

  12. AmWeb: a novel interactive web tool for antimicrobial resistance surveillance, applicable to both community and hospital patients.

    PubMed

    Ironmonger, Dean; Edeghere, Obaghe; Gossain, Savita; Bains, Amardeep; Hawkey, Peter M

    2013-10-01

    Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is recognized as one of the most significant threats to human health. Local and regional AMR surveillance enables the monitoring of temporal changes in susceptibility to antibiotics and can provide prescribing guidance to healthcare providers to improve patient management and help slow the spread of antibiotic resistance in the community. There is currently a paucity of routine community-level AMR surveillance information. The HPA in England sponsored the development of an AMR surveillance system (AmSurv) to collate local laboratory reports. In the West Midlands region of England, routine reporting of AMR data has been established via the AmSurv system from all diagnostic microbiology laboratories. The HPA Regional Epidemiology Unit developed a web-enabled database application (AmWeb) to provide microbiologists, pharmacists and other stakeholders with timely access to AMR data using user-configurable reporting tools. AmWeb was launched in the West Midlands in January 2012 and is used by microbiologists and pharmacists to monitor resistance profiles, perform local benchmarking and compile data for infection control reports. AmWeb is now being rolled out to all English regions. It is expected that AmWeb will become a valuable tool for monitoring the threat from newly emerging or currently circulating resistant organisms and helping antibiotic prescribers to select the best treatment options for their patients.

  13. Development of web tools to disseminate space geodesy data-related products

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Soudarin, L.; Ferrage, P.; Mezerette, A.

    2014-12-01

    In order to promote the products of the DORIS system, the French Space Agency CNES has developed and implemented on the web site of the International DORIS Service (IDS) a set of plot tools to interactively build and display time series of site positions, orbit residuals and terrestrial parameters (scale, geocenter). An interactive global map is also available to select sites, and to get access to their information. Besides the products provided by the CNES Orbitography Team and the IDS components, these tools allow comparing time evolutions of coordinates for collocated DORIS and GNSS stations, thanks to the collaboration with the Terrestrial Frame Combination Center of the International GNSS Service (IGS). The next step currently in progress is the creation of a database to improve robustness and efficiency of the tools, with the objective to propose a complete web service to foster data exchange with the other geodetic services of the International Association of Geodesy (IAG). The possibility to visualize and compare position time series of the four main space geodetic techniques DORIS, GNSS, SLR and VLBI is already under way at the French level. A dedicated version of these web tools has been developed for the French Space Geodesy Research Group (GRGS). It will give access to position time series provided by the GRGS Analysis Centers involved in DORIS, GNSS, SLR and VLBI data processing for the realization of the International Terrestrial Reference Frame. In this presentation, we will describe the functionalities of these tools, and we will address some aspects of the time series (content, format).

  14. Development of web tools to disseminate space geodesy data-related products

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Soudarin, Laurent; Ferrage, Pascale; Mezerette, Adrien

    2015-04-01

    In order to promote the products of the DORIS system, the French Space Agency CNES has developed and implemented on the web site of the International DORIS Service (IDS) a set of plot tools to interactively build and display time series of site positions, orbit residuals and terrestrial parameters (scale, geocenter). An interactive global map is also available to select sites, and to get access to their information. Besides the products provided by the CNES Orbitography Team and the IDS components, these tools allow comparing time evolutions of coordinates for collocated DORIS and GNSS stations, thanks to the collaboration with the Terrestrial Frame Combination Center of the International GNSS Service (IGS). A database was created to improve robustness and efficiency of the tools, with the objective to propose a complete web service to foster data exchange with the other geodetic services of the International Association of Geodesy (IAG). The possibility to visualize and compare position time series of the four main space geodetic techniques DORIS, GNSS, SLR and VLBI is already under way at the French level. A dedicated version of these web tools has been developed for the French Space Geodesy Research Group (GRGS). It will give access to position time series provided by the GRGS Analysis Centers involved in DORIS, GNSS, SLR and VLBI data processing for the realization of the International Terrestrial Reference Frame. In this presentation, we will describe the functionalities of these tools, and we will address some aspects of the time series (content, format).

  15. WebScope: A New Tool for Fusion Data Analysis and Visualization

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Yang, Fei; Dang, Ningning; Xiao, Bingjia

    2010-04-01

    A visualization tool was developed through a web browser based on Java applets embedded into HTML pages, in order to provide a world access to the EAST experimental data. It can display data from various trees in different servers in a single panel. With WebScope, it is easier to make a comparison between different data sources and perform a simple calculation over different data sources.

  16. VisBOL: Web-Based Tools for Synthetic Biology Design Visualization.

    PubMed

    McLaughlin, James Alastair; Pocock, Matthew; Mısırlı, Göksel; Madsen, Curtis; Wipat, Anil

    2016-08-19

    VisBOL is a Web-based application that allows the rendering of genetic circuit designs, enabling synthetic biologists to visually convey designs in SBOL visual format. VisBOL designs can be exported to formats including PNG and SVG images to be embedded in Web pages, presentations and publications. The VisBOL tool enables the automated generation of visualizations from designs specified using the Synthetic Biology Open Language (SBOL) version 2.0, as well as a range of well-known bioinformatics formats including GenBank and Pigeoncad notation. VisBOL is provided both as a user accessible Web site and as an open-source (BSD) JavaScript library that can be used to embed diagrams within other content and software.

  17. Accessibility, usability, and usefulness of a Web-based clinical decision support tool to enhance provider-patient communication around Self-management TO Prevent (STOP) Stroke.

    PubMed

    Anderson, Jane A; Godwin, Kyler M; Saleem, Jason J; Russell, Scott; Robinson, Joshua J; Kimmel, Barbara

    2014-12-01

    This article reports redesign strategies identified to create a Web-based user-interface for the Self-management TO Prevent (STOP) Stroke Tool. Members of a Stroke Quality Improvement Network (N = 12) viewed a visualization video of a proposed prototype and provided feedback on implementation barriers/facilitators. Stroke-care providers (N = 10) tested the Web-based prototype in think-aloud sessions of simulated clinic visits. Participants' dialogues were coded into themes. Access to comprehensive information and the automated features/systematized processes were the primary accessibility and usability facilitator themes. The need for training, time to complete the tool, and computer-centric care were identified as possible usability barriers. Patient accountability, reminders for best practice, goal-focused care, and communication/counseling themes indicate that the STOP Stroke Tool supports the paradigm of patient-centered care. The STOP Stroke Tool was found to prompt clinicians on secondary stroke-prevention clinical-practice guidelines, facilitate comprehensive documentation of evidence-based care, and support clinicians in providing patient-centered care through the shared decision-making process that occurred while using the action-planning/goal-setting feature of the tool. © The Author(s) 2013.

  18. A web-based decision support tool for prognosis simulation in multiple sclerosis.

    PubMed

    Veloso, Mário

    2014-09-01

    A multiplicity of natural history studies of multiple sclerosis provides valuable knowledge of the disease progression but individualized prognosis remains elusive. A few decision support tools that assist the clinician in such task have emerged but have not received proper attention from clinicians and patients. The objective of the current work is to implement a web-based tool, conveying decision relevant prognostic scientific evidence, which will help clinicians discuss prognosis with individual patients. Data were extracted from a set of reference studies, especially those dealing with the natural history of multiple sclerosis. The web-based decision support tool for individualized prognosis simulation was implemented with NetLogo, a program environment suited for the development of complex adaptive systems. Its prototype has been launched online; it enables clinicians to predict both the likelihood of CIS to CDMS conversion, and the long-term prognosis of disability level and SPMS conversion, as well as assess and monitor the effects of treatment. More robust decision support tools, which convey scientific evidence and satisfy the needs of clinical practice by helping clinicians discuss prognosis expectations with individual patients, are required. The web-based simulation model herein introduced proposes to be a step forward toward this purpose. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  19. Web Delivery of Interactive Laboratories: Comparison of Three Authoring Tools.

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Silbar, Richard R.

    2001-11-01

    It is well-known that the more the end user (e.g., a student) interacts with a subject, the better he or she will learn it. This is particularly so in technical subjects. One way to do this is to have "laboratories" in which the student manipulates objects on the screen with keyboard or mouse and then sees the outcome of those actions. An example of such a laboratory can be seen at http://www.whistlesoft.com/ silbar/demo/vecadd, which deals with addition of two vectors in the geometric approach. This laboratory was built using Macromedia's Authorware. The problem with Authorware for this purpose is that, if one wants to deliver the training over the Web, that requires the download and installation of a big plug-in. As an experiment I recently tried to build clones of the Vector Addition Laboratory using Macromedia's Director or Flash, each of which have smaller plug-ins which are often already installed in the user's browser. I was able to come up with Director and Flash versions that are similar to (but definitely not the same as) the Authorware version. This talk goes into these differences and demonstrates the techniques used.

  20. Web Delivery of Interactive Laboratories: Comparison of Three Authoring Tools

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Silbar, Richard R.

    2002-04-01

    It is well-known that the more a student interacts with a subject, the better he or she will learn it. This is particularly true in technical subjects. One way to do this is to have computer-based "laboratories" in which the student manipulates objects on the screen with keyboard or mouse and then sees the outcome of those actions. One example of such a laboratory we have built, using Macromedia's Authorware, deals with addition of two vectors in the geometric approach. The problem with Authorware, however, is that, if one wants to deliver the training over the Web, that requires the download and installation of a big plug-in. Therefore, as an experiment, I built clones of the Vector Addition Laboratory using Macromedia's Director or Flash, each of which have smaller plug-ins which are often already installed in the user's browser. The Director and Flash versions are similar to (but definitely not the same as) the Authorware version. This talk goes into these differences and demonstrates the techniques used. You can view the three examples on-line at http://www.whistlesoft.com/ silbar.

  1. Web-Based Course Delivery and Administration Using Scheme.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Salustri, Filippo A.

    This paper discusses the use at the University of Windsor (Ontario) of a small World Wide Web-based tool for course delivery and administration called HAL (HTML-based Administrative Lackey), written in the Scheme programming language. This tool was developed by the author to provide Web-based services for a large first-year undergraduate course in…

  2. Evaluating the Effectiveness of Web-based Climate Resilience Decision Support Tools: Insights from Coastal New Jersey

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Brady, M.; Lathrop, R.; Auermuller, L. M.; Leichenko, R.

    2016-12-01

    Despite the recent surge of Web-based decision support tools designed to promote resiliency in U.S. coastal communities, to-date there has been no systematic study of their effectiveness. This study demonstrates a method to evaluate important aspects of effectiveness of four Web map tools designed to promote consideration of climate risk information in local decision-making and planning used in coastal New Jersey. In summer 2015, the research team conducted in-depth phone interviews with users of one regulatory and three non-regulatory Web map tools using a semi-structured questionnaire. The interview and analysis design drew from a combination of effectiveness evaluation approaches developed in software and information usability, program evaluation, and management information system (MIS) research. Effectiveness assessment results were further analyzed and discussed in terms of conceptual hierarchy of system objectives defined by respective tool developer and user organizations represented in the study. Insights from the interviews suggest that users rely on Web tools as a supplement to desktop and analog map sources because they provide relevant and up-to-date information in a highly accessible and mobile format. The users also reported relying on multiple information sources and comparison between digital and analog sources for decision support. However, with respect to this decision support benefit, users were constrained by accessibility factors such as lack of awareness and training with some tools, lack of salient information such as planning time horizons associated with future flood scenarios, and environmental factors such as mandates restricting some users to regulatory tools. Perceptions of Web tool credibility seem favorable overall, but factors including system design imperfections and inconsistencies in data and information across platforms limited trust, highlighting a need for better coordination between tools. Contributions of the study include

  3. A Web-based cost-effective training tool with possible application to brain injury rehabilitation.

    PubMed

    Wang, Peijun; Kreutzer, Ina Anna; Bjärnemo, Robert; Davies, Roy C

    2004-06-01

    Virtual reality (VR) has provoked enormous interest in the medical community. In particular, VR offers therapists new approaches for improving rehabilitation effects. However, most of these VR assistant tools are not very portable, extensible or economical. Due to the vast amount of 3D data, they are not suitable for Internet transfer. Furthermore, in order to run these VR systems smoothly, special hardware devices are needed. As a result, existing VR assistant tools tend to be available in hospitals but not in patients' homes. To overcome these disadvantages, as a case study, this paper proposes a Web-based Virtual Ticket Machine, called WBVTM, using VRML [VRML Consortium, The Virtual Reality Modeling Language: International Standard ISO/IEC DIS 14772-1, 1997, available at ], Java and EAI (External Authoring Interface) [Silicon Graphics, Inc., The External Authoring Interface (EAI), available at ], to help people with acquired brain injury (ABI) to relearn basic living skills at home at a low cost. As these technologies are open standard and feature usability on the Internet, WBVTM achieves the goals of portability, easy accessibility and cost-effectiveness.

  4. Studying Behaviors Among Neurosurgery Residents Using Web 2.0 Analytic Tools.

    PubMed

    Davidson, Benjamin; Alotaibi, Naif M; Guha, Daipayan; Amaral, Sandi; Kulkarni, Abhaya V; Lozano, Andres M

    Web 2.0 technologies (e.g., blogs, social networks, and wikis) are increasingly being used by medical schools and postgraduate training programs as tools for information dissemination. These technologies offer the unique opportunity to track metrics of user engagement and interaction. Here, we employ Web 2.0 tools to assess academic behaviors among neurosurgery residents. We performed a retrospective review of all educational lectures, part of the core Neurosurgery Residency curriculum at the University of Toronto, posted on our teaching website (www.TheBrainSchool.net). Our website was developed using publicly available Web 2.0 platforms. Lecture usage was assessed by the number of clicks, and associations were explored with lecturer academic position, timing of examinations, and lecture/subspecialty topic. The overall number of clicks on 77 lectures was 1079. Most of these clicks were occurring during the in-training examination month (43%). Click numbers were significantly higher on lectures presented by faculty (mean = 18.6, standard deviation ± 4.1) compared to those delivered by residents (mean = 8.4, standard deviation ± 2.1) (p = 0.031). Lectures covering topics in functional neurosurgery received the most clicks (47%), followed by pediatric neurosurgery (22%). This study demonstrates the value of Web 2.0 analytic tools in examining resident study behavior. Residents tend to "cram" by downloading lectures in the same month of training examinations and display a preference for faculty-delivered lectures. Copyright © 2017 Association of Program Directors in Surgery. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  5. Teaching with technology: automatically receiving information from the internet and web.

    PubMed

    Wink, Diane M

    2010-01-01

    In this bimonthly series, the author examines how nurse educators can use the Internet and Web-based computer technologies such as search, communication, and collaborative writing tools, social networking and social bookmarking sites, virtual worlds, and Web-based teaching and learning programs. This article presents information and tools related to automatically receiving information from the Internet and Web.

  6. Prototype of Partial Cutting Tool of Geological Map Images Distributed by Geological Web Map Service

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Nonogaki, S.; Nemoto, T.

    2014-12-01

    Geological maps and topographical maps play an important role in disaster assessment, resource management, and environmental preservation. These map information have been distributed in accordance with Web services standards such as Web Map Service (WMS) and Web Map Tile Service (WMTS) recently. In this study, a partial cutting tool of geological map images distributed by geological WMTS was implemented with Free and Open Source Software. The tool mainly consists of two functions: display function and cutting function. The former function was implemented using OpenLayers. The latter function was implemented using Geospatial Data Abstraction Library (GDAL). All other small functions were implemented by PHP and Python. As a result, this tool allows not only displaying WMTS layer on web browser but also generating a geological map image of intended area and zoom level. At this moment, available WTMS layers are limited to the ones distributed by WMTS for the Seamless Digital Geological Map of Japan. The geological map image can be saved as GeoTIFF format and WebGL format. GeoTIFF is one of the georeferenced raster formats that is available in many kinds of Geographical Information System. WebGL is useful for confirming a relationship between geology and geography in 3D. In conclusion, the partial cutting tool developed in this study would contribute to create better conditions for promoting utilization of geological information. Future work is to increase the number of available WMTS layers and the types of output file format.

  7. Proposition and Organization of an Adaptive Learning Domain Based on Fusion from the Web

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Chaoui, Mohammed; Laskri, Mohamed Tayeb

    2013-01-01

    The Web allows self-navigated education through interaction with large amounts of Web resources. While enjoying the flexibility of Web tools, authors may suffer from research and filtering Web resources, when they face various resources formats and complex structures. An adaptation of extracted Web resources must be assured by authors, to give…

  8. Teaching a Foreign Language to Deaf People via Vodcasting & Web 2.0 Tools

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Drigas, Athanasios; Vrettaros, John; Tagoulis, Alexandors; Kouremenos, Dimitris

    This paper presents the design and development of an e-learning course in teaching deaf people in a foreign language, whose first language is the sign language. The course is based in e-material, vodcasting and web 2.0 tools such as social networking and blog The course has been designed especially for deaf people and it is exploring the possibilities that e-learning material vodcasting and web 2.0 tools can offer to enhance the learning process and achieve more effective learning results.

  9. Allocation of DSST in the New implementation of Tastrodyweb Tools Web-site

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    San Juan, J. F.; Lara, M.; López, R.; López, L. M.; Weeden, B.; Cefola, P. J.

    2012-09-01

    The Draper Semianalytic Satellite Theory (DSST) is a semianalytic orbit propagator, which was carried out on Fortran to run from a command line interface. The construction of DSST began at the Computer Sciences Corporation and continued at the Draper Laboratory in the late 1970's and early 1980's. There are two versions of this application. One of them can be found as an option within the Goddard Trajectory Determination System (GTDS), whereas the other is available as a Standalone Orbit Propagator Package. Both versions are constantly evolving and updating. This constant evolution and updating allows DSST to take into account a wide variety of perturbation forces, which can be selected by means of a non-trivial options system at run time, and makes DSST a useful tool for performing short-term high accuracy orbit determination as well as long-term evolution. DSST has been included as part of an open source project for Space Situational Awareness and space object catalog work. On the last IAC 2011 a first step was taken in this sense and DSST was included on the tastrody Web-Site prototype [3, 4], which provided DSST with a friendly web interface, thus simplifying its use for both expert and non-expert users. However, this prototype has evolved into a stable platform based on the Drupal open source content management system (http://drupal.org Drupal), which simplifies the integration of our own application server. Drupal is supported by a large group of developers and users. Furthermore, a significant number of web-sites have been created using Drupal. In this work we present the integration of DSST in the new web-site, the new facilities provide by this platform to create the research community based on DSST and the comparison tests between the GTDS DSST, DSST Standalone and DSST Web version. These tests will be available in order to facilitate the user with better understanding of DSST. REFERENCES [1] J. G. Neelon, P. J. Cefola, and R. J. Proulx, Current

  10. FlaME: Flash Molecular Editor - a 2D structure input tool for the web.

    PubMed

    Dallakian, Pavel; Haider, Norbert

    2011-02-01

    So far, there have been no Flash-based web tools available for chemical structure input. The authors herein present a feasibility study, aiming at the development of a compact and easy-to-use 2D structure editor, using Adobe's Flash technology and its programming language, ActionScript. As a reference model application from the Java world, we selected the Java Molecular Editor (JME). In this feasibility study, we made an attempt to realize a subset of JME's functionality in the Flash Molecular Editor (FlaME) utility. These basic capabilities are: structure input, editing and depiction of single molecules, data import and export in molfile format. The result of molecular diagram sketching in FlaME is accessible in V2000 molfile format. By integrating the molecular editor into a web page, its communication with the HTML elements on this page is established using the two JavaScript functions, getMol() and setMol(). In addition, structures can be copied to the system clipboard. A first attempt was made to create a compact single-file application for 2D molecular structure input/editing on the web, based on Flash technology. With the application examples presented in this article, it could be demonstrated that the Flash methods are principally well-suited to provide the requisite communication between the Flash object (application) and the HTML elements on a web page, using JavaScript functions.

  11. Creative Networks of Practice Using Web 2.0 Tools

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Orava, Jukka; Worrall, Pete

    2011-01-01

    This paper examines the professional implications for teachers and managers in new and evolving forms of professional development using Web 2.0 tools in a European context. Research findings are presented from the "Creative Use of Media" learning event developed through a European eTwinning Learning Lab initiative in spring of 2009. The…

  12. bioWeb3D: an online webGL 3D data visualisation tool

    PubMed Central

    2013-01-01

    Background Data visualization is critical for interpreting biological data. However, in practice it can prove to be a bottleneck for non trained researchers; this is especially true for three dimensional (3D) data representation. Whilst existing software can provide all necessary functionalities to represent and manipulate biological 3D datasets, very few are easily accessible (browser based), cross platform and accessible to non-expert users. Results An online HTML5/WebGL based 3D visualisation tool has been developed to allow biologists to quickly and easily view interactive and customizable three dimensional representations of their data along with multiple layers of information. Using the WebGL library Three.js written in Javascript, bioWeb3D allows the simultaneous visualisation of multiple large datasets inputted via a simple JSON, XML or CSV file, which can be read and analysed locally thanks to HTML5 capabilities. Conclusions Using basic 3D representation techniques in a technologically innovative context, we provide a program that is not intended to compete with professional 3D representation software, but that instead enables a quick and intuitive representation of reasonably large 3D datasets. PMID:23758781

  13. bioWeb3D: an online webGL 3D data visualisation tool.

    PubMed

    Pettit, Jean-Baptiste; Marioni, John C

    2013-06-07

    Data visualization is critical for interpreting biological data. However, in practice it can prove to be a bottleneck for non trained researchers; this is especially true for three dimensional (3D) data representation. Whilst existing software can provide all necessary functionalities to represent and manipulate biological 3D datasets, very few are easily accessible (browser based), cross platform and accessible to non-expert users. An online HTML5/WebGL based 3D visualisation tool has been developed to allow biologists to quickly and easily view interactive and customizable three dimensional representations of their data along with multiple layers of information. Using the WebGL library Three.js written in Javascript, bioWeb3D allows the simultaneous visualisation of multiple large datasets inputted via a simple JSON, XML or CSV file, which can be read and analysed locally thanks to HTML5 capabilities. Using basic 3D representation techniques in a technologically innovative context, we provide a program that is not intended to compete with professional 3D representation software, but that instead enables a quick and intuitive representation of reasonably large 3D datasets.

  14. Oh! Web 2.0, Virtual Reference Service 2.0, Tools & Techniques (II)

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Arya, Harsh Bardhan; Mishra, J. K.

    2012-01-01

    The paper describes the theory and definition of the practice of librarianship, specifically addressing how Web 2.0 technologies (tools) such as synchronous messaging, collaborative reference service and streaming media, blogs, wikis, social networks, social bookmarking tools, tagging, RSS feeds, and mashups might intimate changes and how…

  15. Appreciating Hubble at Hyper-speed: A Web-tool for Students and Teachers

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Will, Lisa M.; Mechtley, M.; Cohen, S.; Windhorst, R. A.; Malhotra, S.; Rhoads, J.; Pirzkal, N.; Summers, F.

    2006-12-01

    Even post-instruction, many high school students and non-science college majors lack a firm understanding of the basic concepts of physics and astronomy necessary to appreciate our expanding universe. To mitigate this trend, we are developing a state-of-the-art Web-tool called "Appreciating Hubble at Hyper-speed" (AHaH ) that uses the HST Cycle 14 Treasury Project "PEARS" (Probing Evolution And Reionization through Spectra) data. AHaH will span the fully 3-dimensional PEARS database of the GOODS/HUDF galaxy distribution from redshifts z = 0.05 to z = 6.5, spanning nearly 90% of the history of the Universe. The web-tool AHaH will allow students to interactively zoom in/out of this PEARS data base, rotate, and accelerate/decelerate towards a specified target, and travel forward or backwards in time. Hence, students can make a complete interactive journey in look-back time. AHaH will help students learn and visually understand basic concepts of physics and astronomy, and at the same time allow them to explore how galaxies change when traveling back in time, how their light is redshifted, and how they are formed and clustered in the expanding Universe. This poster will describe the features of the web-tool and the services that will be offered to help teachers implement this tool in their classrooms.

  16. Evaluation of flood hazard maps in print and web mapping services as information tools in flood risk communication

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Hagemeier-Klose, M.; Wagner, K.

    2009-04-01

    Flood risk communication with the general public and the population at risk is getting increasingly important for flood risk management, especially as a precautionary measure. This is also underlined by the EU Flood Directive. The flood related authorities therefore have to develop adjusted information tools which meet the demands of different user groups. This article presents the formative evaluation of flood hazard maps and web mapping services according to the specific requirements and needs of the general public using the dynamic-transactional approach as a theoretical framework. The evaluation was done by a mixture of different methods; an analysis of existing tools, a creative workshop with experts and laymen and an online survey. The currently existing flood hazard maps or web mapping services or web GIS still lack a good balance between simplicity and complexity with adequate readability and usability for the public. Well designed and associative maps (e.g. using blue colours for water depths) which can be compared with past local flood events and which can create empathy in viewers, can help to raise awareness, to heighten the activity and knowledge level or can lead to further information seeking. Concerning web mapping services, a linkage between general flood information like flood extents of different scenarios and corresponding water depths and real time information like gauge levels is an important demand by users. Gauge levels of these scenarios are easier to understand than the scientifically correct return periods or annualities. The recently developed Bavarian web mapping service tries to integrate these requirements.

  17. Web-based Tool Suite for Plasmasphere Information Discovery

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Newman, T. S.; Wang, C.; Gallagher, D. L.

    2005-12-01

    A suite of tools that enable discovery of terrestrial plasmasphere characteristics from NASA IMAGE Extreme Ultra Violet (EUV) images is described. The tool suite is web-accessible, allowing easy remote access without the need for any software installation on the user's computer. The features supported by the tool include reconstruction of the plasmasphere plasma density distribution from a short sequence of EUV images, semi-automated selection of the plasmapause boundary in an EUV image, and mapping of the selected boundary to the geomagnetic equatorial plane. EUV image upload and result download is also supported. The tool suite's plasmapause mapping feature is achieved via the Roelof and Skinner (2000) Edge Algorithm. The plasma density reconstruction is achieved through a tomographic technique that exploits physical constraints to allow for a moderate resolution result. The tool suite's software architecture uses Java Server Pages (JSP) and Java Applets on the front side for user-software interaction and Java Servlets on the server side for task execution. The compute-intensive components of the tool suite are implemented in C++ and invoked by the server via Java Native Interface (JNI).

  18. Authoring Tools for Collaborative Intelligent Tutoring System Environments

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Olsen, Jennifer K.; Belenky, Daniel M.; Aleven, Vincent; Rummel, Nikol; Sewall, Jonathan; Ringenberg, Michael

    2014-01-01

    Authoring tools have been shown to decrease the amount of time and resources needed for the development of Intelligent Tutoring Systems (ITSs). Although collaborative learning has been shown to be beneficial to learning, most of the current authoring tools do not support the development of collaborative ITSs. In this paper, we discuss an extension…

  19. The Web-Database Connection Tools for Sharing Information on the Campus Intranet.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Thibeault, Nancy E.

    This paper evaluates four tools for creating World Wide Web pages that interface with Microsoft Access databases: DB Gateway, Internet Database Assistant (IDBA), Microsoft Internet Database Connector (IDC), and Cold Fusion. The system requirements and features of each tool are discussed. A sample application, "The Virtual Help Desk"…

  20. Web 2.0 Tools in the Prevention of Curable Sexually Transmitted Diseases: Scoping Review

    PubMed Central

    2018-01-01

    Background The internet is now the primary source of information that young people use to get information on issues related to sex, contraception, and sexually transmitted infections. Objective The goal of the research was to review the scientific literature related to the use of Web 2.0 tools as opposed to other strategies in the prevention of curable sexually transmitted diseases (STDs). Methods A scoping review was performed on the documentation indexed in the bibliographic databases MEDLINE, Cochrane Library, Scopus, Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature, Web of Science, Literatura Latinoamericana y del Caribe en Ciencias de la Salud, PsycINFO, Educational Resources Information Center, the databases of Centro Superior de Investigaciones Científicas in Spain, and the Índice Bibliográfico Español de Ciencias de la Salud from the first available date according to the characteristics of each database until April 2017. The equation search was realized by means of the using of descriptors together with the consultation of the fields of title register and summary with free terms. Bibliographies of the selected papers were searched for additional articles. Results A total of 627 references were retrieved, of which 6 papers were selected after applying the inclusion and exclusion criteria. The STDs studied were chlamydia, gonorrhea, and syphilis. The Web 2.0 tools used were Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube. The 6 papers used Web 2.0 in the promotion of STD detection. Conclusions Web 2.0 tools have demonstrated a positive effect on the promotion of prevention strategies for STDs and can help attract and link youth to campaigns related to sexual health. These tools can be combined with other interventions. In any case, Web 2.0 and especially Facebook have all the potential to become essential instruments for public health. PMID:29567633

  1. The Tools of the Web Assisted Foreign Language Instruction

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Uzunboylu, Huseyin

    2005-01-01

    The purpose of this study was to review the asynchronous and synchronous tools of the Web assisted foreign language instruction. This study was conducted on the base of literature survey, so the findings was interpreted and evaluated for the purpose of the study. In the study, firstly, we were preferred to give a brief description of the each Web…

  2. A web-based rapid assessment tool for production publishing solutions

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Sun, Tong

    2010-02-01

    Solution assessment is a critical first-step in understanding and measuring the business process efficiency enabled by an integrated solution package. However, assessing the effectiveness of any solution is usually a very expensive and timeconsuming task which involves lots of domain knowledge, collecting and understanding the specific customer operational context, defining validation scenarios and estimating the expected performance and operational cost. This paper presents an intelligent web-based tool that can rapidly assess any given solution package for production publishing workflows via a simulation engine and create a report for various estimated performance metrics (e.g. throughput, turnaround time, resource utilization) and operational cost. By integrating the digital publishing workflow ontology and an activity based costing model with a Petri-net based workflow simulation engine, this web-based tool allows users to quickly evaluate any potential digital publishing solutions side-by-side within their desired operational contexts, and provides a low-cost and rapid assessment for organizations before committing any purchase. This tool also benefits the solution providers to shorten the sales cycles, establishing a trustworthy customer relationship and supplement the professional assessment services with a proven quantitative simulation and estimation technology.

  3. Web-based CERES Clouds QC Property Viewing Tool

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Smith, R. A.; Chu, C.; Sun-Mack, S.; Chen, Y.; Heckert, E.; Minnis, P.

    2014-12-01

    This presentation will display the capabilities of a web-based CERES cloud property viewer. Terra data will be chosen for examples. It will demonstrate viewing of cloud properties in gridded global maps, histograms, time series displays, latitudinal zonal images, binned data charts, data frequency graphs, and ISCCP plots. Images can be manipulated by the user to narrow boundaries of the map as well as color bars and value ranges, compare datasets, view data values, and more. Other atmospheric studies groups will be encouraged to put their data into the underlying NetCDF data format and view their data with the tool. A laptop will hopefully be available to allow conference attendees to try navigating the tool.

  4. Accessing the SEED genome databases via Web services API: tools for programmers.

    PubMed

    Disz, Terry; Akhter, Sajia; Cuevas, Daniel; Olson, Robert; Overbeek, Ross; Vonstein, Veronika; Stevens, Rick; Edwards, Robert A

    2010-06-14

    The SEED integrates many publicly available genome sequences into a single resource. The database contains accurate and up-to-date annotations based on the subsystems concept that leverages clustering between genomes and other clues to accurately and efficiently annotate microbial genomes. The backend is used as the foundation for many genome annotation tools, such as the Rapid Annotation using Subsystems Technology (RAST) server for whole genome annotation, the metagenomics RAST server for random community genome annotations, and the annotation clearinghouse for exchanging annotations from different resources. In addition to a web user interface, the SEED also provides Web services based API for programmatic access to the data in the SEED, allowing the development of third-party tools and mash-ups. The currently exposed Web services encompass over forty different methods for accessing data related to microbial genome annotations. The Web services provide comprehensive access to the database back end, allowing any programmer access to the most consistent and accurate genome annotations available. The Web services are deployed using a platform independent service-oriented approach that allows the user to choose the most suitable programming platform for their application. Example code demonstrate that Web services can be used to access the SEED using common bioinformatics programming languages such as Perl, Python, and Java. We present a novel approach to access the SEED database. Using Web services, a robust API for access to genomics data is provided, without requiring large volume downloads all at once. The API ensures timely access to the most current datasets available, including the new genomes as soon as they come online.

  5. Conservation-Oriented Hbim. The Bimexplorer Web Tool

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Quattrini, R.; Pierdicca, R.; Morbidoni, C.; Malinverni, E. S.

    2017-05-01

    The application of (H)BIM within the domain of Architectural Historical Heritage has huge potential that can be even exploited within the restoration domain. The work presents a novel approach to solve the widespread interoperability issue related to the data enrichment in BIM environment, by developing and testing a web tool based on a specific workflow experienced choosing as the case study a Romanic church in Portonovo, Ancona, Italy. Following the need to make the data, organized in a BIM environment, usable for the different actors involved in the restoration phase, we have created a pipeline that take advantage of BIM existing platforms and semantic-web technologies, enabling the end user to query a repository composed of semantically structured data. The pipeline of work consists in four major steps: i) modelling an ontology with the main information needs for the domain of interest, providing a data structure that can be leveraged to inform the data-enrichment phase and, later, to meaningfully query the data; ii) data enrichment, by creating a set of shared parameters reflecting the properties in our domain ontology; iii) structuring data in a machine-readable format (through a data conversion) to represent the domain (ontology) and analyse data of specific buildings respectively; iv) development of a demonstrative data exploration web application based on the faceted browsing paradigm and allowing to exploit both structured metadata and 3D visualization. The application can be configured by a domain expert to reflect a given domain ontology, and used by an operator to query and explore the data in a more efficient and reliable way. With the proposed solution the analysis of data can be reused together with the 3D model, providing the end-user with a non proprietary tool; in this way, the planned maintenance or the restoration project became more collaborative and interactive, optimizing the whole process of HBIM data collection.

  6. Analogies: Explanatory Tools in Web-Based Science Instruction

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Glynn, Shawn M.; Taasoobshirazi, Gita; Fowler, Shawn

    2007-01-01

    This article helps designers of Web-based science instruction construct analogies that are as effective as those used in classrooms by exemplary science teachers. First, the authors explain what analogies are, how analogies foster learning, and what form analogies should take. Second, they discuss science teachers' use of analogies. Third, they…

  7. MyFreePACS: a free web-based radiology image storage and viewing tool.

    PubMed

    de Regt, David; Weinberger, Ed

    2004-08-01

    We developed an easy-to-use method for central storage and subsequent viewing of radiology images for use on any PC equipped with Internet Explorer. We developed MyFreePACS, a program that uses a DICOM server to receive and store images and transmit them over the Web to the MyFreePACS Web client. The MyFreePACS Web client is a Web page that uses an ActiveX control for viewing and manipulating images. The client contains many of the tools found in modern image viewing stations including 3D localization and multiplanar reformation. The system is built entirely with free components and is freely available for download and installation from the Web at www.myfreepacs.com.

  8. PepMapper: a collaborative web tool for mapping epitopes from affinity-selected peptides.

    PubMed

    Chen, Wenhan; Guo, William W; Huang, Yanxin; Ma, Zhiqiang

    2012-01-01

    Epitope mapping from affinity-selected peptides has become popular in epitope prediction, and correspondingly many Web-based tools have been developed in recent years. However, the performance of these tools varies in different circumstances. To address this problem, we employed an ensemble approach to incorporate two popular Web tools, MimoPro and Pep-3D-Search, together for taking advantages offered by both methods so as to give users more options for their specific purposes of epitope-peptide mapping. The combined operation of Union finds as many associated peptides as possible from both methods, which increases sensitivity in finding potential epitopic regions on a given antigen surface. The combined operation of Intersection achieves to some extent the mutual verification by the two methods and hence increases the likelihood of locating the genuine epitopic region on a given antigen in relation to the interacting peptides. The Consistency between Intersection and Union is an indirect sufficient condition to assess the likelihood of successful peptide-epitope mapping. On average from 27 tests, the combined operations of PepMapper outperformed either MimoPro or Pep-3D-Search alone. Therefore, PepMapper is another multipurpose mapping tool for epitope prediction from affinity-selected peptides. The Web server can be freely accessed at: http://informatics.nenu.edu.cn/PepMapper/

  9. Implementing Web 2.0 Tools in the Classroom: Four Teachers' Accounts

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Kovalik, Cindy; Kuo, Chia-Ling; Cummins, Megan; Dipzinski, Erin; Joseph, Paula; Laskey, Stephanie

    2014-01-01

    In this paper, four teachers shared their experiences using the following free Web 2.0 tools with their students: Jing, Wix, Google Sites, and Blogger. The teachers found that students reacted positively to lessons in which these tools were used, and also noted improvements they could make when using them in the future.

  10. Oh! Web 2.0, Virtual Reference Service 2.0, Tools and Techniques (I): A Basic Approach

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Arya, Harsh Bardhan; Mishra, J. K.

    2011-01-01

    This study targets librarians and information professionals who use Web 2.0 tools and applications with a view to providing snapshots on how Web 2.0 technologies are used. It also aims to identify values and impact that such tools have exerted on libraries and their services, as well as to detect various issues associated with the implementation…

  11. Interpreting User's Choice of Technologies: A Quantitative Research on Choosing the Best Web-Based Communication Tools

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Adebiaye, Richmond

    2010-01-01

    The proliferation of web-based communication tools like email clients vis-a-vis Yahoo mail, Gmail, and Hotmail have led to new innovations in web-based communication. Email users benefit greatly from this technology, but lack of security of these tools can put users at risk of loss of privacy, including identity theft, corporate espionage, and…

  12. A Web simulation of medical image reconstruction and processing as an educational tool.

    PubMed

    Papamichail, Dimitrios; Pantelis, Evaggelos; Papagiannis, Panagiotis; Karaiskos, Pantelis; Georgiou, Evangelos

    2015-02-01

    Web educational resources integrating interactive simulation tools provide students with an in-depth understanding of the medical imaging process. The aim of this work was the development of a purely Web-based, open access, interactive application, as an ancillary learning tool in graduate and postgraduate medical imaging education, including a systematic evaluation of learning effectiveness. The pedagogic content of the educational Web portal was designed to cover the basic concepts of medical imaging reconstruction and processing, through the use of active learning and motivation, including learning simulations that closely resemble actual tomographic imaging systems. The user can implement image reconstruction and processing algorithms under a single user interface and manipulate various factors to understand the impact on image appearance. A questionnaire for pre- and post-training self-assessment was developed and integrated in the online application. The developed Web-based educational application introduces the trainee in the basic concepts of imaging through textual and graphical information and proceeds with a learning-by-doing approach. Trainees are encouraged to participate in a pre- and post-training questionnaire to assess their knowledge gain. An initial feedback from a group of graduate medical students showed that the developed course was considered as effective and well structured. An e-learning application on medical imaging integrating interactive simulation tools was developed and assessed in our institution.

  13. Interactive and Approachable Web-Based Tools for Exploring Global Geophysical Data Records

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Croteau, M. J.; Nerem, R. S.; Merrifield, M. A.; Thompson, P. R.; Loomis, B. D.; Wiese, D. N.; Zlotnicki, V.; Larson, J.; Talpe, M.; Hardy, R. A.

    2017-12-01

    Making global and regional data accessible and understandable for non-experts can be both challenging and hazardous. While data products are often developed with end users in mind, the ease of use of these data can vary greatly. Scientists must take care to provide detailed guides for how to use data products to ensure users are not incorrectly applying data to their problem. For example, terrestrial water storage data from the Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment (GRACE) satellite mission is notoriously difficult for non-experts to access and correctly use. However, allowing these data to be easily accessible to scientists outside the GRACE community is desirable because this would allow that data to see much wider-spread use. We have developed a web-based interactive mapping and plotting tool that provides easy access to geophysical data. This work presents an intuitive method for making such data widely accessible to experts and non-experts alike, making the data approachable and ensuring proper use of the data. This tool has proven helpful to experts by providing fast and detailed access to the data. Simultaneously, the tool allows non-experts to gain familiarity with the information contained in the data and access to that information for both scientific studies and public use. In this presentation, we discuss the development of this tool and application to both GRACE and ocean altimetry satellite missions, and demonstrate the capabilities of the tool. Focusing on the data visualization aspects of the tool, we showcase our integrations of the Mapbox API and the D3.js data-driven web document framework. We then explore the potential of these tools in other web-based visualization projects, and how incorporation of such tools into science can improve the presentation of research results. We demonstrate how the development of an interactive and exploratory resource can enable further layers of exploratory and scientific discovery.

  14. Heat*seq: an interactive web tool for high-throughput sequencing experiment comparison with public data.

    PubMed

    Devailly, Guillaume; Mantsoki, Anna; Joshi, Anagha

    2016-11-01

    Better protocols and decreasing costs have made high-throughput sequencing experiments now accessible even to small experimental laboratories. However, comparing one or few experiments generated by an individual lab to the vast amount of relevant data freely available in the public domain might be limited due to lack of bioinformatics expertise. Though several tools, including genome browsers, allow such comparison at a single gene level, they do not provide a genome-wide view. We developed Heat*seq, a web-tool that allows genome scale comparison of high throughput experiments chromatin immuno-precipitation followed by sequencing, RNA-sequencing and Cap Analysis of Gene Expression) provided by a user, to the data in the public domain. Heat*seq currently contains over 12 000 experiments across diverse tissues and cell types in human, mouse and drosophila. Heat*seq displays interactive correlation heatmaps, with an ability to dynamically subset datasets to contextualize user experiments. High quality figures and tables are produced and can be downloaded in multiple formats. Web application: http://www.heatstarseq.roslin.ed.ac.uk/ Source code: https://github.com/gdevailly CONTACT: Guillaume.Devailly@roslin.ed.ac.uk or Anagha.Joshi@roslin.ed.ac.ukSupplementary information: Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online. © The Author 2016. Published by Oxford University Press.

  15. FlaME: Flash Molecular Editor - a 2D structure input tool for the web

    PubMed Central

    2011-01-01

    Background So far, there have been no Flash-based web tools available for chemical structure input. The authors herein present a feasibility study, aiming at the development of a compact and easy-to-use 2D structure editor, using Adobe's Flash technology and its programming language, ActionScript. As a reference model application from the Java world, we selected the Java Molecular Editor (JME). In this feasibility study, we made an attempt to realize a subset of JME's functionality in the Flash Molecular Editor (FlaME) utility. These basic capabilities are: structure input, editing and depiction of single molecules, data import and export in molfile format. Implementation The result of molecular diagram sketching in FlaME is accessible in V2000 molfile format. By integrating the molecular editor into a web page, its communication with the HTML elements on this page is established using the two JavaScript functions, getMol() and setMol(). In addition, structures can be copied to the system clipboard. Conclusion A first attempt was made to create a compact single-file application for 2D molecular structure input/editing on the web, based on Flash technology. With the application examples presented in this article, it could be demonstrated that the Flash methods are principally well-suited to provide the requisite communication between the Flash object (application) and the HTML elements on a web page, using JavaScript functions. PMID:21284863

  16. PDB-Metrics: a web tool for exploring the PDB contents.

    PubMed

    Fileto, Renato; Kuser, Paula R; Yamagishi, Michel E B; Ribeiro, André A; Quinalia, Thiago G; Franco, Eduardo H; Mancini, Adauto L; Higa, Roberto H; Oliveira, Stanley R M; Santos, Edgard H; Vieira, Fabio D; Mazoni, Ivan; Cruz, Sergio A B; Neshich, Goran

    2006-06-30

    PDB-Metrics (http://sms.cbi.cnptia.embrapa.br/SMS/pdb_metrics/index.html) is a component of the Diamond STING suite of programs for the analysis of protein sequence, structure and function. It summarizes the characteristics of the collection of protein structure descriptions deposited in the Protein Data Bank (PDB) and provides a Web interface to search and browse the PDB, using a variety of alternative criteria. PDB-Metrics is a powerful tool for bioinformaticians to examine the data span in the PDB from several perspectives. Although other Web sites offer some similar resources to explore the PDB contents, PDB-Metrics is among those with the most complete set of such facilities, integrated into a single Web site. This program has been developed using SQLite, a C library that provides all the query facilities of a database management system.

  17. Formalization of treatment guidelines using Fuzzy Cognitive Maps and semantic web tools.

    PubMed

    Papageorgiou, Elpiniki I; Roo, Jos De; Huszka, Csaba; Colaert, Dirk

    2012-02-01

    Therapy decision making and support in medicine deals with uncertainty and needs to take into account the patient's clinical parameters, the context of illness and the medical knowledge of the physician and guidelines to recommend a treatment therapy. This research study is focused on the formalization of medical knowledge using a cognitive process, called Fuzzy Cognitive Maps (FCMs) and semantic web approach. The FCM technique is capable of dealing with situations including uncertain descriptions using similar procedure such as human reasoning does. Thus, it was selected for the case of modeling and knowledge integration of clinical practice guidelines. The semantic web tools were established to implement the FCM approach. The knowledge base was constructed from the clinical guidelines as the form of if-then fuzzy rules. These fuzzy rules were transferred to FCM modeling technique and, through the semantic web tools, the whole formalization was accomplished. The problem of urinary tract infection (UTI) in adult community was examined for the proposed approach. Forty-seven clinical concepts and eight therapy concepts were identified for the antibiotic treatment therapy problem of UTIs. A preliminary pilot-evaluation study with 55 patient cases showed interesting findings; 91% of the antibiotic treatments proposed by the implemented approach were in fully agreement with the guidelines and physicians' opinions. The results have shown that the suggested approach formalizes medical knowledge efficiently and gives a front-end decision on antibiotics' suggestion for cystitis. Concluding, modeling medical knowledge/therapeutic guidelines using cognitive methods and web semantic tools is both reliable and useful. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  18. A Web-Based Validation Tool for GEWEX

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Smith, R. A.; Gibson, S.; Heckert, E.; Minnis, P.; Sun-Mack, S.; Chen, Y.; Stubenrauch, C.; Kinne, S. A.; Ackerman, S. A.; Baum, B. A.; Chepfer, H.; Di Girolamo, L.; Heidinger, A. K.; Getzewich, B. J.; Guignard, A.; Maddux, B. C.; Menzel, W. P.; Platnick, S. E.; Poulsen, C.; Raschke, E. A.; Riedi, J.; Rossow, W. B.; Sayer, A. M.; Walther, A.; Winker, D. M.

    2011-12-01

    The Global Energy and Water Cycle Experiment (GEWEX) Cloud assessment was initiated by the GEWEX Radiation Panel (GRP) in 2005 to evaluate the variability of available, global, long-term cloud data products. Since then, eleven cloud data records have been established from various instruments, mostly onboard polar orbiting satellites. Cloud properties under study include cloud amount, cloud pressure, cloud temperature, cloud infrared (IR) emissivity and visible (VIS) optical thickness, cloud thermodynamic phase, as well as bulk microphysical properties. The volume of data and variations in parameters, spatial, and temporal resolution for the different datasets constitute a significant challenge for understanding the differences and the value of having more than one dataset. To address this issue, this paper presents a NASA Langley web-based tool to facilitate comparisons among the different cloud data sets. With this tool, the operator can choose to view numeric or graphic presentations to allow comparison between products. Multiple records are displayed in time series graphs, global maps, or zonal plots. The tool has been made flexible so that additional teams can easily add their data sets to the record selection list for use in their own analyses. This tool has possible applications to other climate and weather datasets.

  19. Web-based decision support and visualization tools for water quality management in the Chesapeake Bay watershed

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Mullinix, C.; Hearn, P.; Zhang, H.; Aguinaldo, J.

    2009-01-01

    Federal, State, and local water quality managers charged with restoring the Chesapeake Bay ecosystem require tools to maximize the impact of their limited resources. To address this need, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) and the Environmental Protection Agency's Chesapeake Bay Program (CBP) are developing a suite of Web-based tools called the Chesapeake Online Assessment Support Toolkit (COAST). The goal of COAST is to help CBP partners identify geographic areas where restoration activities would have the greatest effect, select the appropriate management strategies, and improve coordination and prioritization among partners. As part of the COAST suite of tools focused on environmental restoration, a water quality management visualization component called the Nutrient Yields Mapper (NYM) tool is being developed by USGS. The NYM tool is a web application that uses watershed yield estimates from USGS SPAtially Referenced Regressions On Watershed (SPARROW) attributes model (Schwarz et al., 2006) [6] to allow water quality managers to identify important sources of nitrogen and phosphorous within the Chesapeake Bay watershed. The NYM tool utilizes new open source technologies that have become popular in geospatial web development, including components such as OpenLayers and GeoServer. This paper presents examples of water quality data analysis based on nutrient type, source, yield, and area of interest using the NYM tool for the Chesapeake Bay watershed. In addition, we describe examples of map-based techniques for identifying high and low nutrient yield areas; web map engines; and data visualization and data management techniques.

  20. Design and Evaluation of a Web-Based Symptom Monitoring Tool for Heart Failure.

    PubMed

    Wakefield, Bonnie J; Alexander, Gregory; Dohrmann, Mary; Richardson, James

    2017-05-01

    Heart failure is a chronic condition where symptom recognition and between-visit communication with providers are critical. Patients are encouraged to track disease-specific data, such as weight and shortness of breath. Use of a Web-based tool that facilitates data display in graph form may help patients recognize exacerbations and more easily communicate out-of-range data to clinicians. The purposes of this study were to (1) design a Web-based tool to facilitate symptom monitoring and symptom recognition in patients with chronic heart failure and (2) conduct a usability evaluation of the Web site. Patient participants generally had a positive view of the Web site and indicated it would support recording their health status and communicating with their doctors. Clinician participants generally had a positive view of the Web site and indicated it would be a potentially useful adjunct to electronic health delivery systems. Participants expressed a need to incorporate decision support within the site and wanted to add other data, for example, blood pressure, and have the ability to adjust font size. A few expressed concerns about data privacy and security. Technologies require careful design and testing to ensure they are useful, usable, and safe for patients and do not add to the burden of busy providers.

  1. Collaborative Learning and Knowledge-Construction through a Knowledge-Based WWW Authoring Tool.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Haugsjaa, Erik

    This paper outlines hurdles to using the World Wide Web for learning, specifically in a collaborative knowledge-construction environment. Theoretical solutions based directly on existing Web environments, as well as on research and system prototypes in the areas of Intelligent Tutoring Systems (ITS) and ITS authoring systems, are suggested. Topics…

  2. Providing web-based tools for time series access and analysis

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Eberle, Jonas; Hüttich, Christian; Schmullius, Christiane

    2014-05-01

    Time series information is widely used in environmental change analyses and is also an essential information for stakeholders and governmental agencies. However, a challenging issue is the processing of raw data and the execution of time series analysis. In most cases, data has to be found, downloaded, processed and even converted in the correct data format prior to executing time series analysis tools. Data has to be prepared to use it in different existing software packages. Several packages like TIMESAT (Jönnson & Eklundh, 2004) for phenological studies, BFAST (Verbesselt et al., 2010) for breakpoint detection, and GreenBrown (Forkel et al., 2013) for trend calculations are provided as open-source software and can be executed from the command line. This is needed if data pre-processing and time series analysis is being automated. To bring both parts, automated data access and data analysis, together, a web-based system was developed to provide access to satellite based time series data and access to above mentioned analysis tools. Users of the web portal are able to specify a point or a polygon and an available dataset (e.g., Vegetation Indices and Land Surface Temperature datasets from NASA MODIS). The data is then being processed and provided as a time series CSV file. Afterwards the user can select an analysis tool that is being executed on the server. The final data (CSV, plot images, GeoTIFFs) is visualized in the web portal and can be downloaded for further usage. As a first use case, we built up a complimentary web-based system with NASA MODIS products for Germany and parts of Siberia based on the Earth Observation Monitor (www.earth-observation-monitor.net). The aim of this work is to make time series analysis with existing tools as easy as possible that users can focus on the interpretation of the results. References: Jönnson, P. and L. Eklundh (2004). TIMESAT - a program for analysing time-series of satellite sensor data. Computers and Geosciences 30

  3. 2016 eCDRweb User Guide–Primary Authorized Official

    EPA Pesticide Factsheets

    This document presents the user guide for the Office of Pollution Prevention and Toxics’ (OPPT) 2016 e-CDRweb tool. This document is the user guide for the Primary Authorized Official (AO) user of the 2016 e-CDR web tool.

  4. PSAT: A web tool to compare genomic neighborhoods of multiple prokaryotic genomes

    PubMed Central

    Fong, Christine; Rohmer, Laurence; Radey, Matthew; Wasnick, Michael; Brittnacher, Mitchell J

    2008-01-01

    Background The conservation of gene order among prokaryotic genomes can provide valuable insight into gene function, protein interactions, or events by which genomes have evolved. Although some tools are available for visualizing and comparing the order of genes between genomes of study, few support an efficient and organized analysis between large numbers of genomes. The Prokaryotic Sequence homology Analysis Tool (PSAT) is a web tool for comparing gene neighborhoods among multiple prokaryotic genomes. Results PSAT utilizes a database that is preloaded with gene annotation, BLAST hit results, and gene-clustering scores designed to help identify regions of conserved gene order. Researchers use the PSAT web interface to find a gene of interest in a reference genome and efficiently retrieve the sequence homologs found in other bacterial genomes. The tool generates a graphic of the genomic neighborhood surrounding the selected gene and the corresponding regions for its homologs in each comparison genome. Homologs in each region are color coded to assist users with analyzing gene order among various genomes. In contrast to common comparative analysis methods that filter sequence homolog data based on alignment score cutoffs, PSAT leverages gene context information for homologs, including those with weak alignment scores, enabling a more sensitive analysis. Features for constraining or ordering results are designed to help researchers browse results from large numbers of comparison genomes in an organized manner. PSAT has been demonstrated to be useful for helping to identify gene orthologs and potential functional gene clusters, and detecting genome modifications that may result in loss of function. Conclusion PSAT allows researchers to investigate the order of genes within local genomic neighborhoods of multiple genomes. A PSAT web server for public use is available for performing analyses on a growing set of reference genomes through any web browser with no client

  5. Gene Ontology-Based Analysis of Zebrafish Omics Data Using the Web Tool Comparative Gene Ontology.

    PubMed

    Ebrahimie, Esmaeil; Fruzangohar, Mario; Moussavi Nik, Seyyed Hani; Newman, Morgan

    2017-10-01

    Gene Ontology (GO) analysis is a powerful tool in systems biology, which uses a defined nomenclature to annotate genes/proteins within three categories: "Molecular Function," "Biological Process," and "Cellular Component." GO analysis can assist in revealing functional mechanisms underlying observed patterns in transcriptomic, genomic, and proteomic data. The already extensive and increasing use of zebrafish for modeling genetic and other diseases highlights the need to develop a GO analytical tool for this organism. The web tool Comparative GO was originally developed for GO analysis of bacterial data in 2013 ( www.comparativego.com ). We have now upgraded and elaborated this web tool for analysis of zebrafish genetic data using GOs and annotations from the Gene Ontology Consortium.

  6. Cytoscape tools for the web age: D3.js and Cytoscape.js exporters

    PubMed Central

    Ono, Keiichiro; Demchak, Barry; Ideker, Trey

    2014-01-01

    In this paper we present new data export modules for Cytoscape 3 that can generate network files for Cytoscape.js and D3.js. Cytoscape.js exporter is implemented as a core feature of Cytoscape 3, and D3.js exporter is available as a Cytoscape 3 app. These modules enable users to seamlessly export network and table data sets generated in Cytoscape to popular JavaScript library readable formats. In addition, we implemented template web applications for browser-based interactive network visualization that can be used as basis for complex data visualization applications for bioinformatics research. Example web applications created with these tools demonstrate how Cytoscape works in modern data visualization workflows built with traditional desktop tools and emerging web-based technologies. This interactivity enables researchers more flexibility than with static images, thereby greatly improving the quality of insights researchers can gain from them. PMID:25520778

  7. Cytoscape tools for the web age: D3.js and Cytoscape.js exporters.

    PubMed

    Ono, Keiichiro; Demchak, Barry; Ideker, Trey

    2014-01-01

    In this paper we present new data export modules for Cytoscape 3 that can generate network files for Cytoscape.js and D3.js. Cytoscape.js exporter is implemented as a core feature of Cytoscape 3, and D3.js exporter is available as a Cytoscape 3 app. These modules enable users to seamlessly export network and table data sets generated in Cytoscape to popular JavaScript library readable formats. In addition, we implemented template web applications for browser-based interactive network visualization that can be used as basis for complex data visualization applications for bioinformatics research. Example web applications created with these tools demonstrate how Cytoscape works in modern data visualization workflows built with traditional desktop tools and emerging web-based technologies. This interactivity enables researchers more flexibility than with static images, thereby greatly improving the quality of insights researchers can gain from them.

  8. Web 2.0 Tools in the Prevention of Curable Sexually Transmitted Diseases: Scoping Review.

    PubMed

    Sanz-Lorente, María; Wanden-Berghe, Carmina; Castejón-Bolea, Ramón; Sanz-Valero, Javier

    2018-03-22

    The internet is now the primary source of information that young people use to get information on issues related to sex, contraception, and sexually transmitted infections. The goal of the research was to review the scientific literature related to the use of Web 2.0 tools as opposed to other strategies in the prevention of curable sexually transmitted diseases (STDs). A scoping review was performed on the documentation indexed in the bibliographic databases MEDLINE, Cochrane Library, Scopus, Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature, Web of Science, Literatura Latinoamericana y del Caribe en Ciencias de la Salud, PsycINFO, Educational Resources Information Center, the databases of Centro Superior de Investigaciones Científicas in Spain, and the Índice Bibliográfico Español de Ciencias de la Salud from the first available date according to the characteristics of each database until April 2017. The equation search was realized by means of the using of descriptors together with the consultation of the fields of title register and summary with free terms. Bibliographies of the selected papers were searched for additional articles. A total of 627 references were retrieved, of which 6 papers were selected after applying the inclusion and exclusion criteria. The STDs studied were chlamydia, gonorrhea, and syphilis. The Web 2.0 tools used were Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube. The 6 papers used Web 2.0 in the promotion of STD detection. Web 2.0 tools have demonstrated a positive effect on the promotion of prevention strategies for STDs and can help attract and link youth to campaigns related to sexual health. These tools can be combined with other interventions. In any case, Web 2.0 and especially Facebook have all the potential to become essential instruments for public health. ©María Sanz-Lorente, Carmina Wanden-Berghe, Ramón Castejón-Bolea, Javier Sanz-Valero. Originally published in the Journal of Medical Internet Research (http

  9. Transforming School Communities: Creating Dialogue Using Web 2.0 Tools

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Soule, Helen

    2008-01-01

    Web 2.0 tools should be an important part of every district's communication strategy, creating environments for collaboration in ways never possible before. Most of them are free, inexpensive, easy to use, and require little set up. When combined with basic communication principles and careful planning, they can expand a district's reach, increase…

  10. Mining Hidden Gems Beneath the Surface: A Look At the Invisible Web.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Carlson, Randal D.; Repman, Judi

    2002-01-01

    Describes resources for researchers called the Invisible Web that are hidden from the usual search engines and other tools and contrasts them with those resources available on the surface Web. Identifies specialized search tools, databases, and strategies that can be used to locate credible in-depth information. (Author/LRW)

  11. Enhancing Thematic Units Using the World Wide Web: Tools and Strategies for Students with Mild Disabilities.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Gardner, J. Emmett; Wissick, Cheryl A.

    2002-01-01

    This article presents principles for using Web-based activities to support curriculum accommodations for students with mild disabilities. Tools, resources, and strategies are identified to help teachers construct meaningful and Web-enhanced thematic units. Web sites are listed in the areas of math, science, language arts, and social studies;…

  12. Exploring the Relationship between Web 2.0 Tools Self-Efficacy and Teachers' Use of These Tools in Their Teaching

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Alhassan, Riyadh

    2017-01-01

    The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between teachers' self-efficacy in using of Web 2.0 tools and some demographic variables, and their use of those tools in their teaching. The study data was collected from a random sample of public school teachers in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The results showed a strong positive relationship…

  13. Stable-isotope analysis: a neglected tool for placing parasites in food webs.

    PubMed

    Sabadel, A J M; Stumbo, A D; MacLeod, C D

    2018-02-28

    Parasites are often overlooked in the construction of food webs, despite their ubiquitous presence in almost every type of ecosystem. Researchers who do recognize their importance often struggle to include parasites using classical food-web theory, mainly due to the parasites' multiple hosts and life stages. A novel approach using compound-specific stable-isotope analysis promises to provide considerable insight into the energetic exchanges of parasite and host, which may solve some of the issues inherent in incorporating parasites using a classical approach. Understanding the role of parasites within food webs, and tracing the associated biomass transfers, are crucial to constructing new models that will expand our knowledge of food webs. This mini-review focuses on stable-isotope studies published in the past decade, and introduces compound-specific stable-isotope analysis as a powerful, but underutilized, newly developed tool that may answer many unresolved questions regarding the role of parasites in food webs.

  14. Enzyme Function Initiative-Enzyme Similarity Tool (EFI-EST): A web tool for generating protein sequence similarity networks.

    PubMed

    Gerlt, John A; Bouvier, Jason T; Davidson, Daniel B; Imker, Heidi J; Sadkhin, Boris; Slater, David R; Whalen, Katie L

    2015-08-01

    The Enzyme Function Initiative, an NIH/NIGMS-supported Large-Scale Collaborative Project (EFI; U54GM093342; http://enzymefunction.org/), is focused on devising and disseminating bioinformatics and computational tools as well as experimental strategies for the prediction and assignment of functions (in vitro activities and in vivo physiological/metabolic roles) to uncharacterized enzymes discovered in genome projects. Protein sequence similarity networks (SSNs) are visually powerful tools for analyzing sequence relationships in protein families (H.J. Atkinson, J.H. Morris, T.E. Ferrin, and P.C. Babbitt, PLoS One 2009, 4, e4345). However, the members of the biological/biomedical community have not had access to the capability to generate SSNs for their "favorite" protein families. In this article we announce the EFI-EST (Enzyme Function Initiative-Enzyme Similarity Tool) web tool (http://efi.igb.illinois.edu/efi-est/) that is available without cost for the automated generation of SSNs by the community. The tool can create SSNs for the "closest neighbors" of a user-supplied protein sequence from the UniProt database (Option A) or of members of any user-supplied Pfam and/or InterPro family (Option B). We provide an introduction to SSNs, a description of EFI-EST, and a demonstration of the use of EFI-EST to explore sequence-function space in the OMP decarboxylase superfamily (PF00215). This article is designed as a tutorial that will allow members of the community to use the EFI-EST web tool for exploring sequence/function space in protein families. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  15. Therapeutic Uses of the WebCam in Child Psychiatry

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Chlebowski, Susan; Fremont, Wanda

    2011-01-01

    Objective: The authors provide examples for the use of the WebCam as a therapeutic tool in child psychiatry, discussing cases to demonstrate the application of the WebCam, which is most often used in psychiatry training programs during resident supervision and for case presentations. Method: Six cases illustrate the use of the WebCam in individual…

  16. Electronic Ramp to Success: Designing Campus Web Pages for Users with Disabilities.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Coombs, Norman

    2002-01-01

    Discusses key issues in addressing the challenge of Web accessibility for people with disabilities, including tools for Web authoring, repairing, and accessibility validation, and relevant legal issues. Presents standards for Web accessibility, including the Section 508 Standards from the Federal Access Board, and the World Wide Web Consortium's…

  17. A Web Portal-Based Time-Aware KML Animation Tool for Exploring Spatiotemporal Dynamics of Hydrological Events

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Bao, X.; Cai, X.; Liu, Y.

    2009-12-01

    Understanding spatiotemporal dynamics of hydrological events such as storms and droughts is highly valuable for decision making on disaster mitigation and recovery. Virtual Globe-based technologies such as Google Earth and Open Geospatial Consortium KML standards show great promises for collaborative exploration of such events using visual analytical approaches. However, currently there are two barriers for wider usage of such approaches. First, there lacks an easy way to use open source tools to convert legacy or existing data formats such as shapefiles, geotiff, or web services-based data sources to KML and to produce time-aware KML files. Second, an integrated web portal-based time-aware animation tool is currently not available. Thus users usually share their files in the portal but have no means to visually explore them without leaving the portal environment which the users are familiar with. We develop a web portal-based time-aware KML animation tool for viewing extreme hydrologic events. The tool is based on Google Earth JavaScript API and Java Portlet standard 2.0 JSR-286, and it is currently deployable in one of the most popular open source portal frameworks, namely Liferay. We have also developed an open source toolkit kml-soc-ncsa (http://code.google.com/p/kml-soc-ncsa/) to facilitate the conversion of multiple formats into KML and the creation of time-aware KML files. We illustrate our tool using some example cases, in which drought and storm events with both time and space dimension can be explored in this web-based KML animation portlet. The tool provides an easy-to-use web browser-based portal environment for multiple users to collaboratively share and explore their time-aware KML files as well as improving the understanding of the spatiotemporal dynamics of the hydrological events.

  18. CHiCP: a web-based tool for the integrative and interactive visualization of promoter capture Hi-C datasets.

    PubMed

    Schofield, E C; Carver, T; Achuthan, P; Freire-Pritchett, P; Spivakov, M; Todd, J A; Burren, O S

    2016-08-15

    Promoter capture Hi-C (PCHi-C) allows the genome-wide interrogation of physical interactions between distal DNA regulatory elements and gene promoters in multiple tissue contexts. Visual integration of the resultant chromosome interaction maps with other sources of genomic annotations can provide insight into underlying regulatory mechanisms. We have developed Capture HiC Plotter (CHiCP), a web-based tool that allows interactive exploration of PCHi-C interaction maps and integration with both public and user-defined genomic datasets. CHiCP is freely accessible from www.chicp.org and supports most major HTML5 compliant web browsers. Full source code and installation instructions are available from http://github.com/D-I-L/django-chicp ob219@cam.ac.uk. © The Author 2016. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved.

  19. Self-Monitoring Symptoms in Glaucoma: A Feasibility Study of a Web-Based Diary Tool

    PubMed Central

    McDonald, Leanne; Glen, Fiona C.; Taylor, Deanna J.

    2017-01-01

    Purpose. Glaucoma patients annually spend only a few hours in an eye clinic but spend more than 5000 waking hours engaged in everything else. We propose that patients could self-monitor changes in visual symptoms providing valuable between clinic information; we test the hypothesis that this is feasible using a web-based diary tool. Methods. Ten glaucoma patients with a range of visual field loss took part in an eight-week pilot study. After completing a series of baseline tests, volunteers were prompted to monitor symptoms every three days and complete a diary about their vision during daily life using a bespoke web-based diary tool. Response to an end of a study questionnaire about the usefulness of the exercise was a main outcome measure. Results. Eight of the 10 patients rated the monitoring scheme to be “valuable” or “very valuable.” Completion rate to items was excellent (96%). Themes from a qualitative synthesis of the diary entries related to behavioural aspects of glaucoma. One patient concluded that a constant focus on monitoring symptoms led to negative feelings. Conclusions. A web-based diary tool for monitoring self-reported glaucoma symptoms is practically feasible. The tool must be carefully designed to ensure participants are benefitting, and it is not increasing anxiety. PMID:28546876

  20. WebGL and web audio software lightweight components for multimedia education

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Chang, Xin; Yuksel, Kivanc; Skarbek, Władysław

    2017-08-01

    The paper presents the results of our recent work on development of contemporary computing platform DC2 for multimedia education usingWebGL andWeb Audio { the W3C standards. Using literate programming paradigm the WEBSA educational tools were developed. It offers for a user (student), the access to expandable collection of WEBGL Shaders and web Audio scripts. The unique feature of DC2 is the option of literate programming, offered for both, the author and the reader in order to improve interactivity to lightweightWebGL andWeb Audio components. For instance users can define: source audio nodes including synthetic sources, destination audio nodes, and nodes for audio processing such as: sound wave shaping, spectral band filtering, convolution based modification, etc. In case of WebGL beside of classic graphics effects based on mesh and fractal definitions, the novel image processing analysis by shaders is offered like nonlinear filtering, histogram of gradients, and Bayesian classifiers.

  1. Clustergrammer, a web-based heatmap visualization and analysis tool for high-dimensional biological data

    PubMed Central

    Fernandez, Nicolas F.; Gundersen, Gregory W.; Rahman, Adeeb; Grimes, Mark L.; Rikova, Klarisa; Hornbeck, Peter; Ma’ayan, Avi

    2017-01-01

    Most tools developed to visualize hierarchically clustered heatmaps generate static images. Clustergrammer is a web-based visualization tool with interactive features such as: zooming, panning, filtering, reordering, sharing, performing enrichment analysis, and providing dynamic gene annotations. Clustergrammer can be used to generate shareable interactive visualizations by uploading a data table to a web-site, or by embedding Clustergrammer in Jupyter Notebooks. The Clustergrammer core libraries can also be used as a toolkit by developers to generate visualizations within their own applications. Clustergrammer is demonstrated using gene expression data from the cancer cell line encyclopedia (CCLE), original post-translational modification data collected from lung cancer cells lines by a mass spectrometry approach, and original cytometry by time of flight (CyTOF) single-cell proteomics data from blood. Clustergrammer enables producing interactive web based visualizations for the analysis of diverse biological data. PMID:28994825

  2. 2016 e-CDRweb User Guide – Secondary Authorized Official

    EPA Pesticide Factsheets

    This document presents the user guide for the Office of Pollution Prevention and Toxics’ (OPPT) 2016 e-CDRweb tool. This document is the user guide for the Secondary Authorized Official (AO) user of the 2016 e-CDR web tool.

  3. A Web Tool for Generating High Quality Machine-readable Biological Pathways.

    PubMed

    Ramirez-Gaona, Miguel; Marcu, Ana; Pon, Allison; Grant, Jason; Wu, Anthony; Wishart, David S

    2017-02-08

    PathWhiz is a web server built to facilitate the creation of colorful, interactive, visually pleasing pathway diagrams that are rich in biological information. The pathways generated by this online application are machine-readable and fully compatible with essentially all web-browsers and computer operating systems. It uses a specially developed, web-enabled pathway drawing interface that permits the selection and placement of different combinations of pre-drawn biological or biochemical entities to depict reactions, interactions, transport processes and binding events. This palette of entities consists of chemical compounds, proteins, nucleic acids, cellular membranes, subcellular structures, tissues, and organs. All of the visual elements in it can be interactively adjusted and customized. Furthermore, because this tool is a web server, all pathways and pathway elements are publicly accessible. This kind of pathway "crowd sourcing" means that PathWhiz already contains a large and rapidly growing collection of previously drawn pathways and pathway elements. Here we describe a protocol for the quick and easy creation of new pathways and the alteration of existing pathways. To further facilitate pathway editing and creation, the tool contains replication and propagation functions. The replication function allows existing pathways to be used as templates to create or edit new pathways. The propagation function allows one to take an existing pathway and automatically propagate it across different species. Pathways created with this tool can be "re-styled" into different formats (KEGG-like or text-book like), colored with different backgrounds, exported to BioPAX, SBGN-ML, SBML, or PWML data exchange formats, and downloaded as PNG or SVG images. The pathways can easily be incorporated into online databases, integrated into presentations, posters or publications, or used exclusively for online visualization and exploration. This protocol has been successfully applied to

  4. PubMed and beyond: a survey of web tools for searching biomedical literature

    PubMed Central

    Lu, Zhiyong

    2011-01-01

    The past decade has witnessed the modern advances of high-throughput technology and rapid growth of research capacity in producing large-scale biological data, both of which were concomitant with an exponential growth of biomedical literature. This wealth of scholarly knowledge is of significant importance for researchers in making scientific discoveries and healthcare professionals in managing health-related matters. However, the acquisition of such information is becoming increasingly difficult due to its large volume and rapid growth. In response, the National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI) is continuously making changes to its PubMed Web service for improvement. Meanwhile, different entities have devoted themselves to developing Web tools for helping users quickly and efficiently search and retrieve relevant publications. These practices, together with maturity in the field of text mining, have led to an increase in the number and quality of various Web tools that provide comparable literature search service to PubMed. In this study, we review 28 such tools, highlight their respective innovations, compare them to the PubMed system and one another, and discuss directions for future development. Furthermore, we have built a website dedicated to tracking existing systems and future advances in the field of biomedical literature search. Taken together, our work serves information seekers in choosing tools for their needs and service providers and developers in keeping current in the field. Database URL: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/CBBresearch/Lu/search PMID:21245076

  5. Semantic Web applications and tools for the life sciences: SWAT4LS 2010.

    PubMed

    Burger, Albert; Paschke, Adrian; Romano, Paolo; Marshall, M Scott; Splendiani, Andrea

    2012-01-25

    As Semantic Web technologies mature and new releases of key elements, such as SPARQL 1.1 and OWL 2.0, become available, the Life Sciences continue to push the boundaries of these technologies with ever more sophisticated tools and applications. Unsurprisingly, therefore, interest in the SWAT4LS (Semantic Web Applications and Tools for the Life Sciences) activities have remained high, as was evident during the third international SWAT4LS workshop held in Berlin in December 2010. Contributors to this workshop were invited to submit extended versions of their papers, the best of which are now made available in the special supplement of BMC Bioinformatics. The papers reflect the wide range of work in this area, covering the storage and querying of Life Sciences data in RDF triple stores, tools for the development of biomedical ontologies and the semantics-based integration of Life Sciences as well as clinicial data.

  6. Using Web Database Tools To Facilitate the Construction of Knowledge in Online Courses.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    McNeil, Sara G.; Robin, Bernard R.

    This paper presents an overview of database tools that dynamically generate World Wide Web materials and focuses on the use of these tools to support research activities, as well as teaching and learning. Database applications have been used in classrooms to support learning activities for over a decade, but, although business and e-commerce have…

  7. A new web-based modelling tool (Websim-MILQ) aimed at optimisation of thermal treatments in the dairy industry.

    PubMed

    Schutyser, M A I; Straatsma, J; Keijzer, P M; Verschueren, M; De Jong, P

    2008-11-30

    In the framework of a cooperative EU research project (MILQ-QC-TOOL) a web-based modelling tool (Websim-MILQ) was developed for optimisation of thermal treatments in the dairy industry. The web-based tool enables optimisation of thermal treatments with respect to product safety, quality and costs. It can be applied to existing products and processes but also to reduce time to market for new products. Important aspects of the tool are its user-friendliness and its specifications customised to the needs of small dairy companies. To challenge the web-based tool it was applied for optimisation of thermal treatments in 16 dairy companies producing yoghurt, fresh cream, chocolate milk and cheese. Optimisation with WebSim-MILQ resulted in concrete improvements with respect to risk of microbial contamination, cheese yield, fouling and production costs. In this paper we illustrate the use of WebSim-MILQ for optimisation of a cheese milk pasteurisation process where we could increase the cheese yield (1 extra cheese for each 100 produced cheeses from the same amount of milk) and reduced the risk of contamination of pasteurised cheese milk with thermoresistent streptococci from critical to negligible. In another case we demonstrate the advantage for changing from an indirect to a direct heating method for a UHT process resulting in 80% less fouling, while improving product quality and maintaining product safety.

  8. Creation of a Web-Based GIS Server and Custom Geoprocessing Tools for Enhanced Hydrologic Applications

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Welton, B.; Chouinard, K.; Sultan, M.; Becker, D.; Milewski, A.; Becker, R.

    2010-12-01

    Rising populations in the arid and semi arid parts of the World are increasing the demand for fresh water supplies worldwide. Many data sets needed for assessment of hydrologic applications across vast regions of the world are expensive, unpublished, difficult to obtain, or at varying scales which complicates their use. Fortunately, this situation is changing with the development of global remote sensing datasets and web-based platforms such as GIS Server. GIS provides a cost effective vehicle for comparing, analyzing, and querying a variety of spatial datasets as geographically referenced layers. We have recently constructed a web-based GIS, that incorporates all relevant geological, geochemical, geophysical, and remote sensing data sets that were readily used to identify reservoir types and potential well locations on local and regional scales in various tectonic settings including: (1) extensional environment (Red Sea rift), (2) transcurrent fault system (Najd Fault in the Arabian-Nubian Shield), and (3) compressional environments (Himalayas). The web-based GIS could also be used to detect spatial and temporal trends in precipitation, recharge, and runoff in large watersheds on local, regional, and continental scales. These applications were enabled through the construction of a web-based ArcGIS Server with Google Map’s interface and the development of customized geoprocessing tools. ArcGIS Server provides out-of-the-box setups that are generic in nature. This platform includes all of the standard web based GIS tools (e.g. pan, zoom, identify, search, data querying, and measurement). In addition to the standard suite of tools provided by ArcGIS Server an additional set of advanced data manipulation and display tools was also developed to allow for a more complete and customizable view of the area of interest. The most notable addition to the standard GIS Server tools is the custom on-demand geoprocessing tools (e.g., graph, statistical functions, custom raster

  9. Choosing Web 2.0 Tools for Instruction: An Extension of Task-Technology Fit

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Gupta, Saurabh

    2014-01-01

    The growth of technology and the inclusion of "digital natives" as students in the education world have created a demand pull for the use of Web 2.0 technologies in education. Dominant among these tools have been wikis, blogs and discussion boards. Distance education experts view the use of these tools as differentiators when compared to…

  10. SETAC Short Course: Introduction to interspecies toxicity extrapolation using EPA’s Web-ICE tool

    EPA Science Inventory

    The Web-ICE tool is a user friendly interface that contains modules to predict acute toxicity to over 500 species of aquatic (algae, invertebrates, fish) and terrestrial (birds and mammals) taxa. The tool contains a suite of over 3000 ICE models developed from a database of over ...

  11. The web-buffet--development and validation of an online tool to measure food choice.

    PubMed

    Bucher, Tamara; Keller, Carmen

    2015-08-01

    To date, no data exist on the agreement of food choice measured using an online tool with subsequent actual consumption. This needs to be shown before food choice, measured by means of an online tool, is used as a dependent variable to examine intake in the general population. A 'web-buffet' was developed to assess food choice. Choice was measured as planned meal composition from photographic material; respondents chose preferred foods and proportions for a main meal (out of a possible 144 combinations) online and the validity was assessed by comparison of a meal composed from a web-buffet with actual food intake 24-48 h later. Furthermore, correlations of food preferences, energy needs and health interest with meals chosen from the web-buffet were analysed. Students: n 106 (Study I), n 32 (Study II). Meals chosen from the web-buffet (mean = 2998 kJ, SD = 471 kJ) agreed with actual consumption (rs = 0.63, P < 0.001) but were on average 367 kJ (10.5%) lower in energy than consumed meals (mean = 3480 kJ, SD = 755 kJ). Preferences were highly associated with chosen amounts and health interest was negatively correlated with the energy selected (rs = -0.40, P<0.001). Meal composition choice in the web-buffet agrees sufficiently well with actual intake to measure food choice as a dependent variable in online surveys. However, we found an average underestimation of subsequent consumption. High correlations of preferences with chosen amounts and an inverse association of health interest with total energy further indicate the validity of the tool. Applications in behavioural nutrition research are discussed.

  12. Coordinating the Complexity of Tools, Tasks, and Users: On Theory-Based Approaches to Authoring Tool Usability

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Murray, Tom

    2016-01-01

    Intelligent Tutoring Systems authoring tools are highly complex educational software applications used to produce highly complex software applications (i.e. ITSs). How should our assumptions about the target users (authors) impact the design of authoring tools? In this article I first reflect on the factors leading to my original 1999 article on…

  13. The Impact of Self-Efficacy and Professional Development on Implementation of Web 2.0 Tools in Elementary Classrooms

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Ward, Stephen

    2015-01-01

    This study sought to understand the impact of self-efficacy and professional development on the implementation of specific Web 2.0 tools in the elementary classroom. There were three research questions addressed in this QUAN-Qual study. Quantitative data were collected through three surveys with 48 total participants: the Web 2.0 tools Utilization…

  14. Metadata Authoring with Versatility and Extensibility

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Pollack, Janine; Olsen, Lola

    2004-01-01

    NASA's Global Change Master Directory (GCMD) assists the scientific community in the discovery of and linkage to Earth science data sets and related services. The GCMD holds over 13,800 data set descriptions in Directory Interchange Format (DIF) and 700 data service descriptions in Service Entry Resource Format (SERF), encompassing the disciplines of geology, hydrology, oceanography, meteorology, and ecology. Data descriptions also contain geographic coverage information and direct links to the data, thus allowing researchers to discover data pertaining to a geographic location of interest, then quickly acquire those data. The GCMD strives to be the preferred data locator for world-wide directory-level metadata. In this vein, scientists and data providers must have access to intuitive and efficient metadata authoring tools. Existing GCMD tools are attracting widespread usage; however, a need for tools that are portable, customizable and versatile still exists. With tool usage directly influencing metadata population, it has become apparent that new tools are needed to fill these voids. As a result, the GCMD has released a new authoring tool allowing for both web-based and stand-alone authoring of descriptions. Furthermore, this tool incorporates the ability to plug-and-play the metadata format of choice, offering users options of DIF, SERF, FGDC, ISO or any other defined standard. Allowing data holders to work with their preferred format, as well as an option of a stand-alone application or web-based environment, docBUlLDER will assist the scientific community in efficiently creating quality data and services metadata.

  15. Semantic Web Applications and Tools for the Life Sciences: SWAT4LS 2010

    PubMed Central

    2012-01-01

    As Semantic Web technologies mature and new releases of key elements, such as SPARQL 1.1 and OWL 2.0, become available, the Life Sciences continue to push the boundaries of these technologies with ever more sophisticated tools and applications. Unsurprisingly, therefore, interest in the SWAT4LS (Semantic Web Applications and Tools for the Life Sciences) activities have remained high, as was evident during the third international SWAT4LS workshop held in Berlin in December 2010. Contributors to this workshop were invited to submit extended versions of their papers, the best of which are now made available in the special supplement of BMC Bioinformatics. The papers reflect the wide range of work in this area, covering the storage and querying of Life Sciences data in RDF triple stores, tools for the development of biomedical ontologies and the semantics-based integration of Life Sciences as well as clinicial data. PMID:22373274

  16. Web-based Data Exploration, Exploitation and Visualization Tools for Satellite Sensor VIS/IR Calibration Applications

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Gopalan, A.; Doelling, D. R.; Scarino, B. R.; Chee, T.; Haney, C.; Bhatt, R.

    2016-12-01

    The CERES calibration group at NASA/LaRC has developed and deployed a suite of online data exploration and visualization tools targeted towards a range of spaceborne VIS/IR imager calibration applications for the Earth Science community. These web-based tools are driven by the open-source R (Language for Statistical Computing and Visualization) with a web interface for the user to customize the results according to their application. The tool contains a library of geostationary and sun-synchronous imager spectral response functions (SRF), incoming solar spectra, SCIAMACHY and Hyperion Earth reflected visible hyper-spectral data, and IASI IR hyper-spectral data. The suite of six specific web-based tools was designed to provide critical information necessary for sensor cross-calibration. One of the challenges of sensor cross-calibration is accounting for spectral band differences and may introduce biases if not handled properly. The spectral band adjustment factors (SBAF) are a function of the earth target, atmospheric and cloud conditions or scene type and angular conditions, when obtaining sensor radiance pairs. The SBAF will need to be customized for each inter-calibration target and sensor pair. The advantages of having a community open source tool are: 1) only one archive of SCIAMACHY, Hyperion, and IASI datasets needs to be maintained, which is on the order of 50TB. 2) the framework will allow easy incorporation of new satellite SRFs and hyper-spectral datasets and associated coincident atmospheric and cloud properties, such as PW. 3) web tool or SBAF algorithm improvements or suggestions when incorporated can benefit the community at large. 4) The customization effort is on the user rather than on the host. In this paper we discuss each of these tools in detail and explore the variety of advanced options that can be used to constrain the results along with specific use cases to highlight the value-added by these datasets.

  17. An Integrated Web-Based Assessment Tool for Assessing Pesticide Exposure and Risks

    EPA Science Inventory

    Background/Question/Methods We have created an integrated web-based tool designed to estimate exposure doses and ecological risks under the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA) and the Endangered Species Act. This involved combining a number of disparat...

  18. [Web TV, a tool favouring collaboration for quality care].

    PubMed

    Decobert, Jean-Pierre; Weill, Stéphanie

    The Web TV of the EPSM Lille-Métropole is an innovative communication tool in mental health. Aiming to change the image of psychiatry among users as well as professionals, these programmes, posted online, enable viewers to see the care provided by mental health professionals. They are also an opportunity for those involved to get to know each other better to improve the way they work together. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.

  19. Omics AnalySIs System for PRecision Oncology (OASISPRO): A Web-based Omics Analysis Tool for Clinical Phenotype Prediction.

    PubMed

    Yu, Kun-Hsing; Fitzpatrick, Michael R; Pappas, Luke; Chan, Warren; Kung, Jessica; Snyder, Michael

    2017-09-12

    Precision oncology is an approach that accounts for individual differences to guide cancer management. Omics signatures have been shown to predict clinical traits for cancer patients. However, the vast amount of omics information poses an informatics challenge in systematically identifying patterns associated with health outcomes, and no general-purpose data-mining tool exists for physicians, medical researchers, and citizen scientists without significant training in programming and bioinformatics. To bridge this gap, we built the Omics AnalySIs System for PRecision Oncology (OASISPRO), a web-based system to mine the quantitative omics information from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA). This system effectively visualizes patients' clinical profiles, executes machine-learning algorithms of choice on the omics data, and evaluates the prediction performance using held-out test sets. With this tool, we successfully identified genes strongly associated with tumor stage, and accurately predicted patients' survival outcomes in many cancer types, including mesothelioma and adrenocortical carcinoma. By identifying the links between omics and clinical phenotypes, this system will facilitate omics studies on precision cancer medicine and contribute to establishing personalized cancer treatment plans. This web-based tool is available at http://tinyurl.com/oasispro ;source codes are available at http://tinyurl.com/oasisproSourceCode . © The Author (2017). Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com

  20. Food webs: a ladder for picking strawberries or a practical tool for practical problems?

    PubMed Central

    Memmott, Jane

    2009-01-01

    While food webs have provided a rich vein of research material over the last 50 years, they have largely been the subject matter of the pure ecologist working in natural habitats. While there are some notable exceptions to this trend, there are, as I explain in this paper, many applied questions that could be answered using a food web approach. The paper is divided into two halves. The first half provides a brief review of six areas where food webs have begun to be used as an applied tool: restoration ecology, alien species, biological control, conservation ecology, habitat management and global warming. The second half outlines five areas in which a food web approach could prove very rewarding: urban ecology, agroecology, habitat fragmentation, cross-habitat food webs and ecosystem services. PMID:19451120

  1. Food webs: a ladder for picking strawberries or a practical tool for practical problems?

    PubMed

    Memmott, Jane

    2009-06-27

    While food webs have provided a rich vein of research material over the last 50 years, they have largely been the subject matter of the pure ecologist working in natural habitats. While there are some notable exceptions to this trend, there are, as I explain in this paper, many applied questions that could be answered using a food web approach. The paper is divided into two halves. The first half provides a brief review of six areas where food webs have begun to be used as an applied tool: restoration ecology, alien species, biological control, conservation ecology, habitat management and global warming. The second half outlines five areas in which a food web approach could prove very rewarding: urban ecology, agroecology, habitat fragmentation, cross-habitat food webs and ecosystem services.

  2. Design of a Web-tool for diagnostic clinical trials handling medical imaging research.

    PubMed

    Baltasar Sánchez, Alicia; González-Sistal, Angel

    2011-04-01

    New clinical studies in medicine are based on patients and controls using different imaging diagnostic modalities. Medical information systems are not designed for clinical trials employing clinical imaging. Although commercial software and communication systems focus on storage of image data, they are not suitable for storage and mining of new types of quantitative data. We sought to design a Web-tool to support diagnostic clinical trials involving different experts and hospitals or research centres. The image analysis of this project is based on skeletal X-ray imaging. It involves a computerised image method using quantitative analysis of regions of interest in healthy bone and skeletal metastases. The database is implemented with ASP.NET 3.5 and C# technologies for our Web-based application. For data storage, we chose MySQL v.5.0, one of the most popular open source databases. User logins were necessary, and access to patient data was logged for auditing. For security, all data transmissions were carried over encrypted connections. This Web-tool is available to users scattered at different locations; it allows an efficient organisation and storage of data (case report form) and images and allows each user to know precisely what his task is. The advantages of our Web-tool are as follows: (1) sustainability is guaranteed; (2) network locations for collection of data are secured; (3) all clinical information is stored together with the original images and the results derived from processed images and statistical analysis that enable us to perform retrospective studies; (4) changes are easily incorporated because of the modular architecture; and (5) assessment of trial data collected at different sites is centralised to reduce statistical variance.

  3. Student-Led Engagement of Journal Article Authors in the Classroom Using Web-Based Videoconferencing

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Stockman, Brian J.

    2015-01-01

    The learning environment described here uses Web-based videoconferencing technology to merge the traditional classroom journal article discussion with student-led interviews of journal article authors. Papers that describe recent applications of a given technique are selected, with the author engagement occurring at the end of a three or four week…

  4. Beneficial Web 2.0 Tools to Engage Learners and Maximize Learning

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    DiBella, Karen S.; Williams, Kimberly G.

    2015-01-01

    Technology has certainly altered the landscape in which students learn today. The use of technology in today's classrooms is continually increasing as educators seek ways to engage learners and maximize learning potential. Incorporating Web 2.0 tools into the classroom can not only encourage collaboration among learners, but also provide a way for…

  5. Teachers' Perceptions and Attitudes toward the Implementation of Web 2.0 Tools in Secondary Education

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Quadri, Lekan Kamil

    2014-01-01

    Researchers have concluded that Web 2.0 technologies offered many educational benefits. However, many secondary teachers in a large northwestern school district were not using Web 2.0 tools in spite of its possibilities for teaching and learning. The purpose of this quantitative correlational research was to explore the relationships between the…

  6. Web-Based Machine Translation as a Tool for Promoting Electronic Literacy and Language Awareness

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Williams, Lawrence

    2006-01-01

    This article addresses a pervasive problem of concern to teachers of many foreign languages: the use of Web-Based Machine Translation (WBMT) by students who do not understand the complexities of this relatively new tool. Although networked technologies have greatly increased access to many language and communication tools, WBMT is still…

  7. Genomic Enzymology: Web Tools for Leveraging Protein Family Sequence-Function Space and Genome Context to Discover Novel Functions.

    PubMed

    Gerlt, John A

    2017-08-22

    The exponentially increasing number of protein and nucleic acid sequences provides opportunities to discover novel enzymes, metabolic pathways, and metabolites/natural products, thereby adding to our knowledge of biochemistry and biology. The challenge has evolved from generating sequence information to mining the databases to integrating and leveraging the available information, i.e., the availability of "genomic enzymology" web tools. Web tools that allow identification of biosynthetic gene clusters are widely used by the natural products/synthetic biology community, thereby facilitating the discovery of novel natural products and the enzymes responsible for their biosynthesis. However, many novel enzymes with interesting mechanisms participate in uncharacterized small-molecule metabolic pathways; their discovery and functional characterization also can be accomplished by leveraging information in protein and nucleic acid databases. This Perspective focuses on two genomic enzymology web tools that assist the discovery novel metabolic pathways: (1) Enzyme Function Initiative-Enzyme Similarity Tool (EFI-EST) for generating sequence similarity networks to visualize and analyze sequence-function space in protein families and (2) Enzyme Function Initiative-Genome Neighborhood Tool (EFI-GNT) for generating genome neighborhood networks to visualize and analyze the genome context in microbial and fungal genomes. Both tools have been adapted to other applications to facilitate target selection for enzyme discovery and functional characterization. As the natural products community has demonstrated, the enzymology community needs to embrace the essential role of web tools that allow the protein and genome sequence databases to be leveraged for novel insights into enzymological problems.

  8. In Which "Linked Data" Means "a Better Web"

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Chudnov, Daniel

    2009-01-01

    In this article, the author talks about linked data and focuses on the main point of linked data: building a better web. Even though how people build the web has changed steadily over the years (and keeps changing, as programmers switch toolkits and frameworks every few years, disposing of older languages and tools when newer, better ones come…

  9. Databases and Web Tools for Cancer Genomics Study

    PubMed Central

    Yang, Yadong; Dong, Xunong; Xie, Bingbing; Ding, Nan; Chen, Juan; Li, Yongjun; Zhang, Qian; Qu, Hongzhu; Fang, Xiangdong

    2015-01-01

    Publicly-accessible resources have promoted the advance of scientific discovery. The era of genomics and big data has brought the need for collaboration and data sharing in order to make effective use of this new knowledge. Here, we describe the web resources for cancer genomics research and rate them on the basis of the diversity of cancer types, sample size, omics data comprehensiveness, and user experience. The resources reviewed include data repository and analysis tools; and we hope such introduction will promote the awareness and facilitate the usage of these resources in the cancer research community. PMID:25707591

  10. Knowledge Preservation and Web-tools

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Moreman, Douglas; Dyer, John; Ahmad, Rashed

    1998-01-01

    We propose a library of "netbooks" as part of a national effort, preserving the wisdom of the early Space Program. NASA is losing its rocket scientists who designed the great systems of the past. Few new systems of similar ambition are being built; much of the expertise that took us to the Moon is evaporating. With retiring NASA designers, we work to preserve something of the expertise of these individuals, developed at great national cost. We show others the tools that make preservation easy and cheap. Retiring engineers and scientists can be coached into speaking (without charge) into recording devices about ideas not widely appreciated but of potential future value. Transcripts of the recordings and the audio itself are combined (cheaply) in netbooks accessible via a standard web-browser (free). Selected netbooks are indexed into a rapidly searchable system, an electronic Library. We recruit support in establishing a standards committee for that Library. The system is to be a model for access by the blind as well as for preservation of important, technical knowledge.

  11. An overview of the web-based Google Earth coincident imaging tool

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Chander, Gyanesh; Kilough, B.; Gowda, S.

    2010-01-01

    The Committee on Earth Observing Satellites (CEOS) Visualization Environment (COVE) tool is a browser-based application that leverages Google Earth web to display satellite sensor coverage areas. The analysis tool can also be used to identify near simultaneous surface observation locations for two or more satellites. The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) CEOS System Engineering Office (SEO) worked with the CEOS Working Group on Calibration and Validation (WGCV) to develop the COVE tool. The CEOS member organizations are currently operating and planning hundreds of Earth Observation (EO) satellites. Standard cross-comparison exercises between multiple sensors to compare near-simultaneous surface observations and to identify corresponding image pairs are time-consuming and labor-intensive. COVE is a suite of tools that have been developed to make such tasks easier.

  12. Tailored and integrated Web-based tools for improving psychosocial outcomes of cancer patients: the DoTTI development framework.

    PubMed

    Smits, Rochelle; Bryant, Jamie; Sanson-Fisher, Rob; Tzelepis, Flora; Henskens, Frans; Paul, Christine; Stevenson, William

    2014-03-14

    Effective communication with cancer patients and their families about their disease, treatment options, and possible outcomes may improve psychosocial outcomes. However, traditional approaches to providing information to patients, including verbal information and written booklets, have a number of shortcomings centered on their limited ability to meet patient preferences and literacy levels. New-generation Web-based technologies offer an innovative and pragmatic solution for overcoming these limitations by providing a platform for interactive information seeking, information sharing, and user-centered tailoring. The primary goal of this paper is to discuss the advantages of comprehensive and iterative Web-based technologies for health information provision and propose a four-phase framework for the development of Web-based information tools. The proposed framework draws on our experience of constructing a Web-based information tool for hematological cancer patients and their families. The framework is based on principles for the development and evaluation of complex interventions and draws on the Agile methodology of software programming that emphasizes collaboration and iteration throughout the development process. The DoTTI framework provides a model for a comprehensive and iterative approach to the development of Web-based informational tools for patients. The process involves 4 phases of development: (1) Design and development, (2) Testing early iterations, (3) Testing for effectiveness, and (4) Integration and implementation. At each step, stakeholders (including researchers, clinicians, consumers, and programmers) are engaged in consultations to review progress, provide feedback on versions of the Web-based tool, and based on feedback, determine the appropriate next steps in development. This 4-phase framework is evidence-informed and consumer-centered and could be applied widely to develop Web-based programs for a diverse range of diseases.

  13. EBOOK.EXE: A Desktop Authoring Tool for HURAA.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Hu, Xiangen; Mathews, Eric; Graesser, Arthur C.; Susarla, Suresh

    The development of authoring tools for intelligent systems is an important step for creating, maintaining, and structuring content in a quick and easy manner. It has the benefit of allowing for a rapid change to new domains or topics for tutoring. The development of such tools requires functional control, access protection, ease of learning, and…

  14. A Comparison of Web 2.0 Tools in a Doctoral Course

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Meyer, Katrina A.

    2010-01-01

    Adult, professional students in a doctoral-level course used Web 2.0 tools such as wikis, blogs, and online discussions to develop answers to six "Big Questions" related to higher education finance and also produced a research paper that used original data or the research literature to improve understanding of a specific topic. At the close of the…

  15. Web Pages as an Interdisciplinary Tool in English for Architects Classes.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Mansilla, Paloma Ubeda

    2002-01-01

    Proposes the use of web pages as an interdisciplinary tool in classes of English for professional and academic purposes. Languages and computing are two areas of knowledge that the graduate of the Polytechnic University of Madrid and its School of architecture need to study in order to supplement the education received during their degree with the…

  16. Aligning Web-Based Tools to the Research Process Cycle: A Resource for Collaborative Research Projects

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Price, Geoffrey P.; Wright, Vivian H.

    2012-01-01

    Using John Creswell's Research Process Cycle as a framework, this article describes various web-based collaborative technologies useful for enhancing the organization and efficiency of educational research. Visualization tools (Cacoo) assist researchers in identifying a research problem. Resource storage tools (Delicious, Mendeley, EasyBib)…

  17. 75 FR 35765 - Proposed Information Collection; Comment Request; BroadbandMatch Web Site Tool

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2010-06-23

    ... DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE National Telecommunications and Information Administration Proposed Information Collection; Comment Request; BroadbandMatch Web Site Tool AGENCY: National Telecommunications and Information Administration, Commerce. ACTION: Notice. SUMMARY: The Department of Commerce, as part of its...

  18. Web-Based Tools for Text-Based Patient-Provider Communication in Chronic Conditions: Scoping Review

    PubMed Central

    Grunfeld, Eva; Makuwaza, Tutsirai; Bender, Jacqueline L

    2017-01-01

    Background Patients with chronic conditions require ongoing care which not only necessitates support from health care providers outside appointments but also self-management. Web-based tools for text-based patient-provider communication, such as secure messaging, allow for sharing of contextual information and personal narrative in a simple accessible medium, empowering patients and enabling their providers to address emerging care needs. Objective The objectives of this study were to (1) conduct a systematic search of the published literature and the Internet for Web-based tools for text-based communication between patients and providers; (2) map tool characteristics, their intended use, contexts in which they were used, and by whom; (3) describe the nature of their evaluation; and (4) understand the terminology used to describe the tools. Methods We conducted a scoping review using the MEDLINE (Medical Literature Analysis and Retrieval System Online) and EMBASE (Excerpta Medica Database) databases. We summarized information on the characteristics of the tools (structure, functions, and communication paradigm), intended use, context and users, evaluation (study design and outcomes), and terminology. We performed a parallel search of the Internet to compare with tools identified in the published literature. Results We identified 54 papers describing 47 unique tools from 13 countries studied in the context of 68 chronic health conditions. The majority of tools (77%, 36/47) had functions in addition to communication (eg, viewable care plan, symptom diary, or tracker). Eight tools (17%, 8/47) were described as allowing patients to communicate with the team or multiple health care providers. Most of the tools were intended to support communication regarding symptom reporting (49%, 23/47), and lifestyle or behavior modification (36%, 17/47). The type of health care providers who used tools to communicate with patients were predominantly allied health professionals of

  19. Assessing the Effect of Web-Based Learning Tools on Student Understanding of Stoichiometry Using Knowledge Space Theory

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Arasasingham, Ramesh D.; Taagepera, Mare; Potter, Frank; Martorell, Ingrid; Lonjers, Stacy

    2005-01-01

    Student achievement in web-based learning tools is assessed by using in-class examination, pretests, and posttests. The study reveals that using mastering chemistry web software in large-scale instruction provides an overall benefit to introductory chemistry students.

  20. Webbing and Orchestration. Two Interrelated Views on Digital Tools in Mathematics Education

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Trouche, Luc; Drijvers, Paul

    2014-01-01

    The integration of digital tools in mathematics education is considered both promising and problematic. To deal with this issue, notions of "webbing" and "instrumental orchestration" are developed. However, the two seemed to be disconnected, and having different cultural and theoretical roots. In this article, we investigate…

  1. eCDRweb User Guide–Primary Authorized Official

    EPA Pesticide Factsheets

    This document presents the user guide for the Office of Pollution Prevention and Toxics’ (OPPT) e-CDRweb tool. E-CDRweb is the electronic, web-based tool provided by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for the submission of Chemical Data Reporting (CDR) information. This document is the user guide for the Primary Authorized Official (AO) user of the e-CDR webtool

  2. Developing Web-based Tools for Collaborative Science and Public Outreach

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Friedman, A.; Pizarro, O.; Williams, S. B.

    2016-02-01

    With the advances in high bandwidth communications and the proliferation of social media tools, education & outreach activities have become commonplace on ocean-bound research cruises. In parallel, advances in underwater robotics & other data collecting platforms, have made it possible to collect copious amounts of oceanographic data. This data then typically undergoes laborious, manual processing to transform it into quantitative information, which normally occurs post cruise resulting in significant lags between collecting data and using it for scientific discovery. This presentation discusses how appropriately designed software systems, can be used to fulfill multiple objectives and attempt to leverage public engagement in order to compliment science goals. We will present two software platforms: the first is a web browser based tool that was developed for real-time tracking of multiple underwater robots and ships. It was designed to allow anyone on board to view or control it on any device with a web browser. It opens up the possibility of remote teleoperation & engagement and was easily adapted to enable live streaming over the internet for public outreach. While the tracking system provided context and engaged people in real-time, it also directed interested participants to Squidle, another online system. Developed for scientists, Squidle supports data management, exploration & analysis and enables direct access to survey data reducing the lag in data processing. It provides a user-friendly streamlined interface that integrates advanced data management & online annotation tools. This system was adapted to provide a simplified user interface, tutorial instructions and a gamified ranking system to encourage "citizen science" participation. These examples show that through a flexible design approach, it is possible to leverage the development effort of creating science tools to facilitate outreach goals, opening up the possibility for acquiring large volumes of

  3. GPCR-SSFE 2.0-a fragment-based molecular modeling web tool for Class A G-protein coupled receptors.

    PubMed

    Worth, Catherine L; Kreuchwig, Franziska; Tiemann, Johanna K S; Kreuchwig, Annika; Ritschel, Michele; Kleinau, Gunnar; Hildebrand, Peter W; Krause, Gerd

    2017-07-03

    G-protein coupled receptors (GPCRs) are key players in signal transduction and therefore a large proportion of pharmaceutical drugs target these receptors. Structural data of GPCRs are sparse yet important for elucidating the molecular basis of GPCR-related diseases and for performing structure-based drug design. To ameliorate this problem, GPCR-SSFE 2.0 (http://www.ssfa-7tmr.de/ssfe2/), an intuitive web server dedicated to providing three-dimensional Class A GPCR homology models has been developed. The updated web server includes 27 inactive template structures and incorporates various new functionalities. Uniquely, it uses a fingerprint correlation scoring strategy for identifying the optimal templates, which we demonstrate captures structural features that sequence similarity alone is unable to do. Template selection is carried out separately for each helix, allowing both single-template models and fragment-based models to be built. Additionally, GPCR-SSFE 2.0 stores a comprehensive set of pre-calculated and downloadable homology models and also incorporates interactive loop modeling using the tool SL2, allowing knowledge-based input by the user to guide the selection process. For visual analysis, the NGL viewer is embedded into the result pages. Finally, blind-testing using two recently published structures shows that GPCR-SSFE 2.0 performs comparably or better than other state-of-the art GPCR modeling web servers. © The Author(s) 2017. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Nucleic Acids Research.

  4. Fan Database and Web-tool for Choosing Quieter Spaceflight Fans

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Allen, Christopher S.; Burnside, Nathan J.

    2007-01-01

    One critical aspect of designing spaceflight hardware is the selection of fans to provide the necessary cooling. And with efforts to minimize cost and the tendancy to be conservative with the amount of cooling provided, it is easy to choose an overpowered fan. One impact of this is that the fan uses more energy than is necessary. But, the more significant impact is that the hardware produces much more acoustic noise than if an optimal fan was chosen. Choosing the right fan for a specific hardware application is no simple task. It requires knowledge of cooling requirements and various fan performance characteristics as well as knowledge of the aerodynamic losses of the hardware in which the fan is to be installed. Knowledge of the acoustic emissions of each fan as a function of operating condition is also required in order to choose a quieter fan for a given design point. The purpose of this paper is to describe a database and design-tool that have been developed to aid spaceflight hardware developers in choosing a fan for their application that is based on aerodynamic performance and reduced acoustic emissions as well. This web-based-tool provides a limited amount of fan-data, provides a method for selecting a fan based on its projected operating point, and also provides a method for comparing and contrasting aerodynamic performance and acoustic data from different fans. Drill-down techniques are used to display details of the spectral noise characteristics of the fan at specific operation conditions. The fan aerodynamic and acoustic data were acquired at Ames Research Center in the Experimental Aero-Physics Branch's Anechoic Chamber. Acoustic data were acquired according to ANSI Standard S12.11-1987, "Method for the Measurement of Noise Emitted by Small Air-Moving Devices." One significant improvement made to this technique included automation that allows for a significant increase in flow-rate resolution. The web-tool was developed at Johnson Space Center and is

  5. Genomic Enzymology: Web Tools for Leveraging Protein Family Sequence–Function Space and Genome Context to Discover Novel Functions

    PubMed Central

    2017-01-01

    The exponentially increasing number of protein and nucleic acid sequences provides opportunities to discover novel enzymes, metabolic pathways, and metabolites/natural products, thereby adding to our knowledge of biochemistry and biology. The challenge has evolved from generating sequence information to mining the databases to integrating and leveraging the available information, i.e., the availability of “genomic enzymology” web tools. Web tools that allow identification of biosynthetic gene clusters are widely used by the natural products/synthetic biology community, thereby facilitating the discovery of novel natural products and the enzymes responsible for their biosynthesis. However, many novel enzymes with interesting mechanisms participate in uncharacterized small-molecule metabolic pathways; their discovery and functional characterization also can be accomplished by leveraging information in protein and nucleic acid databases. This Perspective focuses on two genomic enzymology web tools that assist the discovery novel metabolic pathways: (1) Enzyme Function Initiative-Enzyme Similarity Tool (EFI-EST) for generating sequence similarity networks to visualize and analyze sequence–function space in protein families and (2) Enzyme Function Initiative-Genome Neighborhood Tool (EFI-GNT) for generating genome neighborhood networks to visualize and analyze the genome context in microbial and fungal genomes. Both tools have been adapted to other applications to facilitate target selection for enzyme discovery and functional characterization. As the natural products community has demonstrated, the enzymology community needs to embrace the essential role of web tools that allow the protein and genome sequence databases to be leveraged for novel insights into enzymological problems. PMID:28826221

  6. MCM generator: a Java-based tool for generating medical metadata.

    PubMed

    Munoz, F; Hersh, W

    1998-01-01

    In a previous paper we introduced the need to implement a mechanism to facilitate the discovery of relevant Web medical documents. We maintained that the use of META tags, specifically ones that define the medical subject and resource type of a document, help towards this goal. We have now developed a tool to facilitate the generation of these tags for the authors of medical documents. Written entirely in Java, this tool makes use of the SAPHIRE server, and helps the author identify the Medical Subject Heading terms that most appropriately describe the subject of the document. Furthermore, it allows the author to generate metadata tags for the 15 elements that the Dublin Core considers as core elements in the description of a document. This paper describes the use of this tool in the cataloguing of Web and non-Web medical documents, such as images, movie, and sound files.

  7. A web-tool to find spatially explicit climate-smart solutions for the sector agriculture

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Verzandvoort, Simone; Kuikman, Peter; Walvoort, Dennis

    2017-04-01

    Europe faces the challenge to produce more food and more biomass for the bio-economy, to adapt its agricultural sector to negative consequences of climate change, and to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from agriculture. Climate-smart agriculture (CSA) solutions and technologies improve agriculture's productivity and provide economic growth and stability, increase resilience, and help to reduce GHG emissions from agricultural activities. The Climate Smart Agriculture Booster (CSAb) (http://csabooster.climate-kic.org/) is a Flagship Program under Climate-KIC, aiming to facilitate the adoption of CSA solutions and technologies in the European agro-food sector. This adoption requires spatially explicit, contextual information on farming activities and risks and opportunities related to climate change in regions across Europe. Other spatial information supporting adoption includes Information on where successful implementations were already done, on where CSA would profit from enabling policy conditions, and where markets or business opportunities for selling or purchasing technology and knowledge are located or emerging. The Spatial Solution Finder is a web-based spatial tool aiming to help agri-food companies (supply and processing), authorities or agricultural organisations find CSA solutions and technologies that fit local farmers and regions, and to demonstrate examples of successful implementations as well as expected impact at the farm and regional level. The tool is based on state of the art (geo)datasets of environmental and socio-economic conditions (partly open access, partly derived from previous research) and open source web-technology. The philosophy of the tool is that combining existing datasets with contextual information on the region of interest with personalized information entered by the user provides a suitable basis for offering a basket of options for CSA solutions and technologies. Solutions and technologies are recommended to the user based on

  8. BioTapestry now provides a web application and improved drawing and layout tools

    PubMed Central

    Paquette, Suzanne M.; Leinonen, Kalle; Longabaugh, William J.R.

    2016-01-01

    Gene regulatory networks (GRNs) control embryonic development, and to understand this process in depth, researchers need to have a detailed understanding of both the network architecture and its dynamic evolution over time and space. Interactive visualization tools better enable researchers to conceptualize, understand, and share GRN models. BioTapestry is an established application designed to fill this role, and recent enhancements released in Versions 6 and 7 have targeted two major facets of the program. First, we introduced significant improvements for network drawing and automatic layout that have now made it much easier for the user to create larger, more organized network drawings. Second, we revised the program architecture so it could continue to support the current Java desktop Editor program, while introducing a new BioTapestry GRN Viewer that runs as a JavaScript web application in a browser. We have deployed a number of GRN models using this new web application. These improvements will ensure that BioTapestry remains viable as a research tool in the face of the continuing evolution of web technologies, and as our understanding of GRN models grows. PMID:27134726

  9. Web based tools for data manipulation, visualisation and validation with interactive georeferenced graphs

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Ivankovic, D.; Dadic, V.

    2009-04-01

    Some of oceanographic parameters have to be manually inserted into database; some (for example data from CTD probe) are inserted from various files. All this parameters requires visualization, validation and manipulation from research vessel or scientific institution, and also public presentation. For these purposes is developed web based system, containing dynamic sql procedures and java applets. Technology background is Oracle 10g relational database, and Oracle application server. Web interfaces are developed using PL/SQL stored database procedures (mod PL/SQL). Additional parts for data visualization include use of Java applets and JavaScript. Mapping tool is Google maps API (javascript) and as alternative java applet. Graph is realized as dynamically generated web page containing java applet. Mapping tool and graph are georeferenced. That means that click on some part of graph, automatically initiate zoom or marker onto location where parameter was measured. This feature is very useful for data validation. Code for data manipulation and visualization are partially realized with dynamic SQL and that allow as to separate data definition and code for data manipulation. Adding new parameter in system requires only data definition and description without programming interface for this kind of data.

  10. BioTapestry now provides a web application and improved drawing and layout tools.

    PubMed

    Paquette, Suzanne M; Leinonen, Kalle; Longabaugh, William J R

    2016-01-01

    Gene regulatory networks (GRNs) control embryonic development, and to understand this process in depth, researchers need to have a detailed understanding of both the network architecture and its dynamic evolution over time and space. Interactive visualization tools better enable researchers to conceptualize, understand, and share GRN models. BioTapestry is an established application designed to fill this role, and recent enhancements released in Versions 6 and 7 have targeted two major facets of the program. First, we introduced significant improvements for network drawing and automatic layout that have now made it much easier for the user to create larger, more organized network drawings. Second, we revised the program architecture so it could continue to support the current Java desktop Editor program, while introducing a new BioTapestry GRN Viewer that runs as a JavaScript web application in a browser. We have deployed a number of GRN models using this new web application. These improvements will ensure that BioTapestry remains viable as a research tool in the face of the continuing evolution of web technologies, and as our understanding of GRN models grows.

  11. Web-Site as an Educational Tool in Biology Education: A Case of Nutrition Issue

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Fancovicova, Jana; Prokop, Pavol; Usak, Muhammet

    2010-01-01

    The purpose of the study was to evaluate the efficacy and feasibility of using website in biology education. We have explored the World Wide Web as a possible tool for education about health and nutrition. The websites were teaching tools for primary school students. Control groups used the traditional educational materials as books or worksheets,…

  12. Tailored and Integrated Web-Based Tools for Improving Psychosocial Outcomes of Cancer Patients: The DoTTI Development Framework

    PubMed Central

    Bryant, Jamie; Sanson-Fisher, Rob; Tzelepis, Flora; Henskens, Frans; Paul, Christine; Stevenson, William

    2014-01-01

    Background Effective communication with cancer patients and their families about their disease, treatment options, and possible outcomes may improve psychosocial outcomes. However, traditional approaches to providing information to patients, including verbal information and written booklets, have a number of shortcomings centered on their limited ability to meet patient preferences and literacy levels. New-generation Web-based technologies offer an innovative and pragmatic solution for overcoming these limitations by providing a platform for interactive information seeking, information sharing, and user-centered tailoring. Objective The primary goal of this paper is to discuss the advantages of comprehensive and iterative Web-based technologies for health information provision and propose a four-phase framework for the development of Web-based information tools. Methods The proposed framework draws on our experience of constructing a Web-based information tool for hematological cancer patients and their families. The framework is based on principles for the development and evaluation of complex interventions and draws on the Agile methodology of software programming that emphasizes collaboration and iteration throughout the development process. Results The DoTTI framework provides a model for a comprehensive and iterative approach to the development of Web-based informational tools for patients. The process involves 4 phases of development: (1) Design and development, (2) Testing early iterations, (3) Testing for effectiveness, and (4) Integration and implementation. At each step, stakeholders (including researchers, clinicians, consumers, and programmers) are engaged in consultations to review progress, provide feedback on versions of the Web-based tool, and based on feedback, determine the appropriate next steps in development. Conclusions This 4-phase framework is evidence-informed and consumer-centered and could be applied widely to develop Web-based programs

  13. The East London glaucoma prediction score: web-based validation of glaucoma risk screening tool

    PubMed Central

    Stephen, Cook; Benjamin, Longo-Mbenza

    2013-01-01

    AIM It is difficult for Optometrists and General Practitioners to know which patients are at risk. The East London glaucoma prediction score (ELGPS) is a web based risk calculator that has been developed to determine Glaucoma risk at the time of screening. Multiple risk factors that are available in a low tech environment are assessed to provide a risk assessment. This is extremely useful in settings where access to specialist care is difficult. Use of the calculator is educational. It is a free web based service. Data capture is user specific. METHOD The scoring system is a web based questionnaire that captures and subsequently calculates the relative risk for the presence of Glaucoma at the time of screening. Three categories of patient are described: Unlikely to have Glaucoma; Glaucoma Suspect and Glaucoma. A case review methodology of patients with known diagnosis is employed to validate the calculator risk assessment. RESULTS Data from the patient records of 400 patients with an established diagnosis has been captured and used to validate the screening tool. The website reports that the calculated diagnosis correlates with the actual diagnosis 82% of the time. Biostatistics analysis showed: Sensitivity = 88%; Positive predictive value = 97%; Specificity = 75%. CONCLUSION Analysis of the first 400 patients validates the web based screening tool as being a good method of screening for the at risk population. The validation is ongoing. The web based format will allow a more widespread recruitment for different geographic, population and personnel variables. PMID:23550097

  14. WebQuests: Tools for Differentiation

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Schweizer, Heidi; Kossow, Ben

    2007-01-01

    This article features the WebQuest, an inquiry-oriented activity in which some or all of the information that learners interact with comes from resources on the Internet. WebQuests, when properly constructed, are activities, usually authentic in nature, that require the student to use Internet-based resources to deepen their understanding and…

  15. Efficient Authorization of Rich Presence Using Secure and Composed Web Services

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Li, Li; Chou, Wu

    This paper presents an extended Role-Based Access Control (RBAC) model for efficient authorization of rich presence using secure web services composed with an abstract presence data model. Following the information symmetry principle, the standard RBAC model is extended to support context sensitive social relations and cascaded authority. In conjunction with the extended RBAC model, we introduce an extensible presence architecture prototype using WS-Security and WS-Eventing to secure rich presence information exchanges based on PKI certificates. Applications and performance measurements of our presence system are presented to show that the proposed RBAC framework for presence and collaboration is well suited for real-time communication and collaboration.

  16. The ChIP-Seq tools and web server: a resource for analyzing ChIP-seq and other types of genomic data.

    PubMed

    Ambrosini, Giovanna; Dreos, René; Kumar, Sunil; Bucher, Philipp

    2016-11-18

    ChIP-seq and related high-throughput chromatin profilig assays generate ever increasing volumes of highly valuable biological data. To make sense out of it, biologists need versatile, efficient and user-friendly tools for access, visualization and itegrative analysis of such data. Here we present the ChIP-Seq command line tools and web server, implementing basic algorithms for ChIP-seq data analysis starting with a read alignment file. The tools are optimized for memory-efficiency and speed thus allowing for processing of large data volumes on inexpensive hardware. The web interface provides access to a large database of public data. The ChIP-Seq tools have a modular and interoperable design in that the output from one application can serve as input to another one. Complex and innovative tasks can thus be achieved by running several tools in a cascade. The various ChIP-Seq command line tools and web services either complement or compare favorably to related bioinformatics resources in terms of computational efficiency, ease of access to public data and interoperability with other web-based tools. The ChIP-Seq server is accessible at http://ccg.vital-it.ch/chipseq/ .

  17. Addressing an I/O Bottleneck in a Web-Based CERES QC Tool

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Heckert, E.; Sun-Mack, S.; Chen, Y.; Chu, C.; Smith, R. A.

    2016-12-01

    In this poster, we explore the technologies we have used to overcome the problem of transmitting and analyzing large datasets in our web-based CERES Quality Control tool and consider four technologies to potentially adopt for future performance improvements. The CERES team uses this tool to validate pixel-level data from Terra, Aqua, SNPP, MSG, MTSAT, and many geostationary GOES satellites, as well as to develop cloud retrieval algorithms. The tool includes a histogram feature that allows the user to aggregate data from many different timestamps and different scenes globally or locally selected by the user by drawing bounding boxes. In order to provide a better user experience, the tool passes a large amount of data to the user's browser. The browser then processes the data in order to present it to users in various formats, for example as a histogram. In addition to using multiple servers to subset data and pass a smaller set of data to the browser, the tool also makes use of a compression technology, Gzip, to reduce the size of the data. However, sometimes the application in the browser is still slow when dealing with these large sets of data due to the delay in the browser receiving the server's response. To address this I/O bottleneck, we will investigate four alternatives and present the results in this poster: 1) sending uncompressed data, 2) ESRI's Limited Error Raster Compression (LERC), 3) Gzip, and 4) WebSocket protocol. These approaches are compared to each other and to the uncompressed control to determine the optimal solution.

  18. Attitudes, Perceptions, and Behavioral Intentions of Engineering Workers toward Web 2.0 Tools in the Workplace

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Krause, Jaclyn A.

    2010-01-01

    As Web 2.0 tools and technologies increase in popularity in consumer markets, enterprises are seeking ways to take advantage of the rich social knowledge exchanges that these tools offer. The problem this study addresses is that it remains unknown whether employees perceive that these tools offer value to the organization and therefore will be…

  19. Teaching Web 2.0 technologies using Web 2.0 technologies.

    PubMed

    Rethlefsen, Melissa L; Piorun, Mary; Prince, J Dale

    2009-10-01

    The research evaluated participant satisfaction with the content and format of the "Web 2.0 101: Introduction to Second Generation Web Tools" course and measured the impact of the course on participants' self-evaluated knowledge of Web 2.0 tools. The "Web 2.0 101" online course was based loosely on the Learning 2.0 model. Content was provided through a course blog and covered a wide range of Web 2.0 tools. All Medical Library Association members were invited to participate. Participants were asked to complete a post-course survey. Respondents who completed the entire course or who completed part of the course self-evaluated their knowledge of nine social software tools and concepts prior to and after the course using a Likert scale. Additional qualitative information about course strengths and weaknesses was also gathered. Respondents' self-ratings showed a significant change in perceived knowledge for each tool, using a matched pair Wilcoxon signed rank analysis (P<0.0001 for each tool/concept). Overall satisfaction with the course appeared high. Hands-on exercises were the most frequently identified strength of the course; the length and time-consuming nature of the course were considered weaknesses by some. Learning 2.0-style courses, though demanding time and self-motivation from participants, can increase knowledge of Web 2.0 tools.

  20. Web Services Integration on the Fly

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2008-12-01

    NETBEANS 6.1 AND VERSION CONTROL............................................28 1. NetBeans Integrated Development Environment (IDE) ................28 2...Forward and Reverse Engineering...................................................28 3. Implementation using NetBeans ...29 4. Subversion (SVN) for Version Control in NetBeans ......................29 O. PROTÉGÉ AUTHORING TOOL FOR SEMANTIC WEB

  1. SieveSifter: a web-based tool for visualizing the sieve analyses of HIV-1 vaccine efficacy trials.

    PubMed

    Fiore-Gartland, Andrew; Kullman, Nicholas; deCamp, Allan C; Clenaghan, Graham; Yang, Wayne; Magaret, Craig A; Edlefsen, Paul T; Gilbert, Peter B

    2017-08-01

    Analysis of HIV-1 virions from participants infected in a randomized controlled preventive HIV-1 vaccine efficacy trial can help elucidate mechanisms of partial protection. By comparing the genetic sequence of viruses from vaccine and placebo recipients to the sequence of the vaccine itself, a technique called 'sieve analysis', one can identify functional specificities of vaccine-induced immune responses. We have created an interactive web-based visualization and data access tool for exploring the results of sieve analyses performed on four major preventive HIV-1 vaccine efficacy trials: (i) the HIV Vaccine Trial Network (HVTN) 502/Step trial, (ii) the RV144/Thai trial, (iii) the HVTN 503/Phambili trial and (iv) the HVTN 505 trial. The tool acts simultaneously as a platform for rapid reinterpretation of sieve effects and as a portal for organizing and sharing the viral sequence data. Access to these valuable datasets also enables the development of novel methodology for future sieve analyses. Visualization: http://sieve.fredhutch.org/viz . Source code: https://github.com/nkullman/SIEVE . Data API: http://sieve.fredhutch.org/data . agartlan@fredhutch.org. © The Author(s) 2017. Published by Oxford University Press.

  2. Web-Based Tools for Text-Based Patient-Provider Communication in Chronic Conditions: Scoping Review.

    PubMed

    Voruganti, Teja; Grunfeld, Eva; Makuwaza, Tutsirai; Bender, Jacqueline L

    2017-10-27

    Patients with chronic conditions require ongoing care which not only necessitates support from health care providers outside appointments but also self-management. Web-based tools for text-based patient-provider communication, such as secure messaging, allow for sharing of contextual information and personal narrative in a simple accessible medium, empowering patients and enabling their providers to address emerging care needs. The objectives of this study were to (1) conduct a systematic search of the published literature and the Internet for Web-based tools for text-based communication between patients and providers; (2) map tool characteristics, their intended use, contexts in which they were used, and by whom; (3) describe the nature of their evaluation; and (4) understand the terminology used to describe the tools. We conducted a scoping review using the MEDLINE (Medical Literature Analysis and Retrieval System Online) and EMBASE (Excerpta Medica Database) databases. We summarized information on the characteristics of the tools (structure, functions, and communication paradigm), intended use, context and users, evaluation (study design and outcomes), and terminology. We performed a parallel search of the Internet to compare with tools identified in the published literature. We identified 54 papers describing 47 unique tools from 13 countries studied in the context of 68 chronic health conditions. The majority of tools (77%, 36/47) had functions in addition to communication (eg, viewable care plan, symptom diary, or tracker). Eight tools (17%, 8/47) were described as allowing patients to communicate with the team or multiple health care providers. Most of the tools were intended to support communication regarding symptom reporting (49%, 23/47), and lifestyle or behavior modification (36%, 17/47). The type of health care providers who used tools to communicate with patients were predominantly allied health professionals of various disciplines (30%, 14

  3. Designing and Developing Web-Based Administrative Tools for Program Management

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Gutensohn, Michael

    2017-01-01

    The task assigned for this internship was to develop a new tool for tracking projects, their subsystems, the leads, backups, and other employees assigned to them, as well as all the relevant information related to the employee (WBS (time charge) codes, time distribution, certifications, and assignments). Currently, this data is tracked manually using a number of different spreadsheets and other tools simultaneously by a number of different people; some of these documents are then merged into one large document. This often leads to inconsistencies and loss in data due to human error. By simplifying the process of tracking this data and aggregating it into a single tool, it is possible to significantly decrease the potential for human error and time spent collecting and checking this information. II. Objective The main objective of this internship is to develop a web-based tool using Ruby on Rails to serve as a method of easily tracking projects, subsystems, and points of contact, along with employees, their assignments, time distribution, certifications, and contact information. Additionally, this tool must be capable of generating a number of different reports based on the data collected. It was important that this tool deliver all of this information using a readable and intuitive interface.

  4. WARCProcessor: An Integrative Tool for Building and Management of Web Spam Corpora.

    PubMed

    Callón, Miguel; Fdez-Glez, Jorge; Ruano-Ordás, David; Laza, Rosalía; Pavón, Reyes; Fdez-Riverola, Florentino; Méndez, Jose Ramón

    2017-12-22

    In this work we present the design and implementation of WARCProcessor, a novel multiplatform integrative tool aimed to build scientific datasets to facilitate experimentation in web spam research. The developed application allows the user to specify multiple criteria that change the way in which new corpora are generated whilst reducing the number of repetitive and error prone tasks related with existing corpus maintenance. For this goal, WARCProcessor supports up to six commonly used data sources for web spam research, being able to store output corpus in standard WARC format together with complementary metadata files. Additionally, the application facilitates the automatic and concurrent download of web sites from Internet, giving the possibility of configuring the deep of the links to be followed as well as the behaviour when redirected URLs appear. WARCProcessor supports both an interactive GUI interface and a command line utility for being executed in background.

  5. WARCProcessor: An Integrative Tool for Building and Management of Web Spam Corpora

    PubMed Central

    Callón, Miguel; Fdez-Glez, Jorge; Ruano-Ordás, David; Laza, Rosalía; Pavón, Reyes; Méndez, Jose Ramón

    2017-01-01

    In this work we present the design and implementation of WARCProcessor, a novel multiplatform integrative tool aimed to build scientific datasets to facilitate experimentation in web spam research. The developed application allows the user to specify multiple criteria that change the way in which new corpora are generated whilst reducing the number of repetitive and error prone tasks related with existing corpus maintenance. For this goal, WARCProcessor supports up to six commonly used data sources for web spam research, being able to store output corpus in standard WARC format together with complementary metadata files. Additionally, the application facilitates the automatic and concurrent download of web sites from Internet, giving the possibility of configuring the deep of the links to be followed as well as the behaviour when redirected URLs appear. WARCProcessor supports both an interactive GUI interface and a command line utility for being executed in background. PMID:29271913

  6. SMARTe: A FREE Web-Based Tool To Help Communities Overcome Revitalization Obstacles

    EPA Science Inventory

    SMARTe (Sustainable Management Approaches and Revitalization Tools -electronic) is a web-based decision support tool developed by the Office of Research and Development (ORD) in partnership with the Office of Brownfields and Land Revitali...

  7. Spatial Visualization Learning in Engineering: Traditional Methods vs. a Web-Based Tool

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Pedrosa, Carlos Melgosa; Barbero, Basilio Ramos; Miguel, Arturo Román

    2014-01-01

    This study compares an interactive learning manager for graphic engineering to develop spatial vision (ILMAGE_SV) to traditional methods. ILMAGE_SV is an asynchronous web-based learning tool that allows the manipulation of objects with a 3D viewer, self-evaluation, and continuous assessment. In addition, student learning may be monitored, which…

  8. Biotool2Web: creating simple Web interfaces for bioinformatics applications.

    PubMed

    Shahid, Mohammad; Alam, Intikhab; Fuellen, Georg

    2006-01-01

    Currently there are many bioinformatics applications being developed, but there is no easy way to publish them on the World Wide Web. We have developed a Perl script, called Biotool2Web, which makes the task of creating web interfaces for simple ('home-made') bioinformatics applications quick and easy. Biotool2Web uses an XML document containing the parameters to run the tool on the Web, and generates the corresponding HTML and common gateway interface (CGI) files ready to be published on a web server. This tool is available for download at URL http://www.uni-muenster.de/Bioinformatics/services/biotool2web/ Georg Fuellen (fuellen@alum.mit.edu).

  9. vFitness: a web-based computing tool for improving estimation of in vitro HIV-1 fitness experiments

    PubMed Central

    2010-01-01

    Background The replication rate (or fitness) between viral variants has been investigated in vivo and in vitro for human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). HIV fitness plays an important role in the development and persistence of drug resistance. The accurate estimation of viral fitness relies on complicated computations based on statistical methods. This calls for tools that are easy to access and intuitive to use for various experiments of viral fitness. Results Based on a mathematical model and several statistical methods (least-squares approach and measurement error models), a Web-based computing tool has been developed for improving estimation of virus fitness in growth competition assays of human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1). Conclusions Unlike the two-point calculation used in previous studies, the estimation here uses linear regression methods with all observed data in the competition experiment to more accurately estimate relative viral fitness parameters. The dilution factor is introduced for making the computational tool more flexible to accommodate various experimental conditions. This Web-based tool is implemented in C# language with Microsoft ASP.NET, and is publicly available on the Web at http://bis.urmc.rochester.edu/vFitness/. PMID:20482791

  10. vFitness: a web-based computing tool for improving estimation of in vitro HIV-1 fitness experiments.

    PubMed

    Ma, Jingming; Dykes, Carrie; Wu, Tao; Huang, Yangxin; Demeter, Lisa; Wu, Hulin

    2010-05-18

    The replication rate (or fitness) between viral variants has been investigated in vivo and in vitro for human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). HIV fitness plays an important role in the development and persistence of drug resistance. The accurate estimation of viral fitness relies on complicated computations based on statistical methods. This calls for tools that are easy to access and intuitive to use for various experiments of viral fitness. Based on a mathematical model and several statistical methods (least-squares approach and measurement error models), a Web-based computing tool has been developed for improving estimation of virus fitness in growth competition assays of human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1). Unlike the two-point calculation used in previous studies, the estimation here uses linear regression methods with all observed data in the competition experiment to more accurately estimate relative viral fitness parameters. The dilution factor is introduced for making the computational tool more flexible to accommodate various experimental conditions. This Web-based tool is implemented in C# language with Microsoft ASP.NET, and is publicly available on the Web at http://bis.urmc.rochester.edu/vFitness/.

  11. UIVerify: A Web-Based Tool for Verification and Automatic Generation of User Interfaces

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Shiffman, Smadar; Degani, Asaf; Heymann, Michael

    2004-01-01

    In this poster, we describe a web-based tool for verification and automatic generation of user interfaces. The verification component of the tool accepts as input a model of a machine and a model of its interface, and checks that the interface is adequate (correct). The generation component of the tool accepts a model of a given machine and the user's task, and then generates a correct and succinct interface. This write-up will demonstrate the usefulness of the tool by verifying the correctness of a user interface to a flight-control system. The poster will include two more examples of using the tool: verification of the interface to an espresso machine, and automatic generation of a succinct interface to a large hypothetical machine.

  12. MyWEST: my Web Extraction Software Tool for effective mining of annotations from web-based databanks.

    PubMed

    Masseroli, Marco; Stella, Andrea; Meani, Natalia; Alcalay, Myriam; Pinciroli, Francesco

    2004-12-12

    High-throughput technologies create the necessity to mine large amounts of gene annotations from diverse databanks, and to integrate the resulting data. Most databanks can be interrogated only via Web, for a single gene at a time, and query results are generally available only in the HTML format. Although some databanks provide batch retrieval of data via FTP, this requires expertise and resources for locally reimplementing the databank. We developed MyWEST, a tool aimed at researchers without extensive informatics skills or resources, which exploits user-defined templates to easily mine selected annotations from different Web-interfaced databanks, and aggregates and structures results in an automatically updated database. Using microarray results from a model system of retinoic acid-induced differentiation, MyWEST effectively gathered relevant annotations from various biomolecular databanks, highlighted significant biological characteristics and supported a global approach to the understanding of complex cellular mechanisms. MyWEST is freely available for non-profit use at http://www.medinfopoli.polimi.it/MyWEST/

  13. A simple web-based tool to compare freshwater fish data collected using AFS standard methods

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Bonar, Scott A.; Mercado-Silva, Norman; Rahr, Matt; Torrey, Yuta T.; Cate, Averill

    2016-01-01

    The American Fisheries Society (AFS) recently published Standard Methods for Sampling North American Freshwater Fishes. Enlisting the expertise of 284 scientists from 107 organizations throughout Canada, Mexico, and the United States, this text was developed to facilitate comparisons of fish data across regions or time. Here we describe a user-friendly web tool that automates among-sample comparisons in individual fish condition, population length-frequency distributions, and catch per unit effort (CPUE) data collected using AFS standard methods. Currently, the web tool (1) provides instantaneous summaries of almost 4,000 data sets of condition, length frequency, and CPUE of common freshwater fishes collected using standard gears in 43 states and provinces; (2) is easily appended with new standardized field data to update subsequent queries and summaries; (3) compares fish data from a particular water body with continent, ecoregion, and state data summaries; and (4) provides additional information about AFS standard fish sampling including benefits, ongoing validation studies, and opportunities to comment on specific methods. The web tool—programmed in a PHP-based Drupal framework—was supported by several AFS Sections, agencies, and universities and is freely available from the AFS website and fisheriesstandardsampling.org. With widespread use, the online tool could become an important resource for fisheries biologists.

  14. Casimage project: a digital teaching files authoring environment.

    PubMed

    Rosset, Antoine; Muller, Henning; Martins, Martina; Dfouni, Natalia; Vallée, Jean-Paul; Ratib, Osman

    2004-04-01

    The goal of the Casimage project is to offer an authoring and editing environment integrated with the Picture Archiving and Communication Systems (PACS) for creating image-based electronic teaching files. This software is based on a client/server architecture allowing remote access of users to a central database. This authoring environment allows radiologists to create reference databases and collection of digital images for teaching and research directly from clinical cases being reviewed on PACS diagnostic workstations. The environment includes all tools to create teaching files, including textual description, annotations, and image manipulation. The software also allows users to generate stand-alone CD-ROMs and web-based teaching files to easily share their collections. The system includes a web server compatible with the Medical Imaging Resource Center standard (MIRC, http://mirc.rsna.org) to easily integrate collections in the RSNA web network dedicated to teaching files. This software could be installed on any PACS workstation to allow users to add new cases at any time and anywhere during clinical operations. Several images collections were created with this tool, including thoracic imaging that was subsequently made available on a CD-Rom and on our web site and through the MIRC network for public access.

  15. Teaching bioinformatics and neuroinformatics by using free web-based tools.

    PubMed

    Grisham, William; Schottler, Natalie A; Valli-Marill, Joanne; Beck, Lisa; Beatty, Jackson

    2010-01-01

    This completely computer-based module's purpose is to introduce students to bioinformatics resources. We present an easy-to-adopt module that weaves together several important bioinformatic tools so students can grasp how these tools are used in answering research questions. Students integrate information gathered from websites dealing with anatomy (Mouse Brain Library), quantitative trait locus analysis (WebQTL from GeneNetwork), bioinformatics and gene expression analyses (University of California, Santa Cruz Genome Browser, National Center for Biotechnology Information's Entrez Gene, and the Allen Brain Atlas), and information resources (PubMed). Instructors can use these various websites in concert to teach genetics from the phenotypic level to the molecular level, aspects of neuroanatomy and histology, statistics, quantitative trait locus analysis, and molecular biology (including in situ hybridization and microarray analysis), and to introduce bioinformatic resources. Students use these resources to discover 1) the region(s) of chromosome(s) influencing the phenotypic trait, 2) a list of candidate genes-narrowed by expression data, 3) the in situ pattern of a given gene in the region of interest, 4) the nucleotide sequence of the candidate gene, and 5) articles describing the gene. Teaching materials such as a detailed student/instructor's manual, PowerPoints, sample exams, and links to free Web resources can be found at http://mdcune.psych.ucla.edu/modules/bioinformatics.

  16. Digital plagiarism--the Web giveth and the Web shall taketh.

    PubMed

    Barrie, J M; Presti, D E

    2000-01-01

    Publishing students' and researchers' papers on the World Wide Web (WWW) facilitates the sharing of information within and between academic communities. However, the ease of copying and transporting digital information leaves these authors' ideas open to plagiarism. Using tools such as the Plagiarism.org database, which compares submissions to reports and papers available on the Internet, could discover instances of plagiarism, revolutionize the peer review process, and raise the quality of published research everywhere.

  17. Ondex Web: web-based visualization and exploration of heterogeneous biological networks.

    PubMed

    Taubert, Jan; Hassani-Pak, Keywan; Castells-Brooke, Nathalie; Rawlings, Christopher J

    2014-04-01

    Ondex Web is a new web-based implementation of the network visualization and exploration tools from the Ondex data integration platform. New features such as context-sensitive menus and annotation tools provide users with intuitive ways to explore and manipulate the appearance of heterogeneous biological networks. Ondex Web is open source, written in Java and can be easily embedded into Web sites as an applet. Ondex Web supports loading data from a variety of network formats, such as XGMML, NWB, Pajek and OXL. http://ondex.rothamsted.ac.uk/OndexWeb.

  18. Web scraping technologies in an API world.

    PubMed

    Glez-Peña, Daniel; Lourenço, Anália; López-Fernández, Hugo; Reboiro-Jato, Miguel; Fdez-Riverola, Florentino

    2014-09-01

    Web services are the de facto standard in biomedical data integration. However, there are data integration scenarios that cannot be fully covered by Web services. A number of Web databases and tools do not support Web services, and existing Web services do not cover for all possible user data demands. As a consequence, Web data scraping, one of the oldest techniques for extracting Web contents, is still in position to offer a valid and valuable service to a wide range of bioinformatics applications, ranging from simple extraction robots to online meta-servers. This article reviews existing scraping frameworks and tools, identifying their strengths and limitations in terms of extraction capabilities. The main focus is set on showing how straightforward it is today to set up a data scraping pipeline, with minimal programming effort, and answer a number of practical needs. For exemplification purposes, we introduce a biomedical data extraction scenario where the desired data sources, well-known in clinical microbiology and similar domains, do not offer programmatic interfaces yet. Moreover, we describe the operation of WhichGenes and PathJam, two bioinformatics meta-servers that use scraping as means to cope with gene set enrichment analysis. © The Author 2013. Published by Oxford University Press. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.

  19. GEM-TREND: a web tool for gene expression data mining toward relevant network discovery

    PubMed Central

    Feng, Chunlai; Araki, Michihiro; Kunimoto, Ryo; Tamon, Akiko; Makiguchi, Hiroki; Niijima, Satoshi; Tsujimoto, Gozoh; Okuno, Yasushi

    2009-01-01

    Background DNA microarray technology provides us with a first step toward the goal of uncovering gene functions on a genomic scale. In recent years, vast amounts of gene expression data have been collected, much of which are available in public databases, such as the Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO). To date, most researchers have been manually retrieving data from databases through web browsers using accession numbers (IDs) or keywords, but gene-expression patterns are not considered when retrieving such data. The Connectivity Map was recently introduced to compare gene expression data by introducing gene-expression signatures (represented by a set of genes with up- or down-regulated labels according to their biological states) and is available as a web tool for detecting similar gene-expression signatures from a limited data set (approximately 7,000 expression profiles representing 1,309 compounds). In order to support researchers to utilize the public gene expression data more effectively, we developed a web tool for finding similar gene expression data and generating its co-expression networks from a publicly available database. Results GEM-TREND, a web tool for searching gene expression data, allows users to search data from GEO using gene-expression signatures or gene expression ratio data as a query and retrieve gene expression data by comparing gene-expression pattern between the query and GEO gene expression data. The comparison methods are based on the nonparametric, rank-based pattern matching approach of Lamb et al. (Science 2006) with the additional calculation of statistical significance. The web tool was tested using gene expression ratio data randomly extracted from the GEO and with in-house microarray data, respectively. The results validated the ability of GEM-TREND to retrieve gene expression entries biologically related to a query from GEO. For further analysis, a network visualization interface is also provided, whereby genes and gene annotations

  20. GEM-TREND: a web tool for gene expression data mining toward relevant network discovery.

    PubMed

    Feng, Chunlai; Araki, Michihiro; Kunimoto, Ryo; Tamon, Akiko; Makiguchi, Hiroki; Niijima, Satoshi; Tsujimoto, Gozoh; Okuno, Yasushi

    2009-09-03

    DNA microarray technology provides us with a first step toward the goal of uncovering gene functions on a genomic scale. In recent years, vast amounts of gene expression data have been collected, much of which are available in public databases, such as the Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO). To date, most researchers have been manually retrieving data from databases through web browsers using accession numbers (IDs) or keywords, but gene-expression patterns are not considered when retrieving such data. The Connectivity Map was recently introduced to compare gene expression data by introducing gene-expression signatures (represented by a set of genes with up- or down-regulated labels according to their biological states) and is available as a web tool for detecting similar gene-expression signatures from a limited data set (approximately 7,000 expression profiles representing 1,309 compounds). In order to support researchers to utilize the public gene expression data more effectively, we developed a web tool for finding similar gene expression data and generating its co-expression networks from a publicly available database. GEM-TREND, a web tool for searching gene expression data, allows users to search data from GEO using gene-expression signatures or gene expression ratio data as a query and retrieve gene expression data by comparing gene-expression pattern between the query and GEO gene expression data. The comparison methods are based on the nonparametric, rank-based pattern matching approach of Lamb et al. (Science 2006) with the additional calculation of statistical significance. The web tool was tested using gene expression ratio data randomly extracted from the GEO and with in-house microarray data, respectively. The results validated the ability of GEM-TREND to retrieve gene expression entries biologically related to a query from GEO. For further analysis, a network visualization interface is also provided, whereby genes and gene annotations are dynamically

  1. Managing and monitoring tuberculosis using web-based tools in combination with traditional approaches

    PubMed Central

    Chapman, Ann LN; Darton, Thomas C; Foster, Rachel A

    2013-01-01

    Tuberculosis (TB) remains a global health emergency. Ongoing challenges include the coordination of national and international control programs, high levels of drug resistance in many parts of the world, and availability of accurate and rapid diagnostic tests. The increasing availability and reliability of Internet access throughout both affluent and resource-limited countries brings new opportunities to improve TB management and control through the integration of web-based technologies with traditional approaches. In this review, we explore current and potential future use of web-based tools in the areas of TB diagnosis, treatment, epidemiology, service monitoring, and teaching and training. PMID:24294008

  2. Development of a nursing handoff tool: a web-based application to enhance patient safety.

    PubMed

    Goldsmith, Denise; Boomhower, Marc; Lancaster, Diane R; Antonelli, Mary; Kenyon, Mary Anne Murphy; Benoit, Angela; Chang, Frank; Dykes, Patricia C

    2010-11-13

    Dynamic and complex clinical environments present many challenges for effective communication among health care providers. The omission of accurate, timely, easily accessible vital information by health care providers significantly increases risk of patient harm and can have devastating consequences for patient care. An effective nursing handoff supports the standardized transfer of accurate, timely, critical patient information, as well as continuity of care and treatment, resulting in enhanced patient safety. The Brigham and Women's/Faulkner Hospital Healthcare Information Technology Innovation Program (HIP) is supporting the development of a web based nursing handoff tool (NHT). The goal of this project is to develop a "proof of concept" handoff application to be evaluated by nurses on the inpatient intermediate care units. The handoff tool would enable nurses to use existing knowledge of evidence-based handoff methodology in their everyday practice to improve patient care and safety. In this paper, we discuss the results of nursing focus groups designed to identify the current state of handoff practice as well as the functional and data element requirements of a web based Nursing Handoff Tool (NHT).

  3. Ontology-Based Multimedia Authoring Tool for Adaptive E-Learning

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Deng, Lawrence Y.; Keh, Huan-Chao; Liu, Yi-Jen

    2010-01-01

    More video streaming technologies supporting distance learning systems are becoming popular among distributed network environments. In this paper, the authors develop a multimedia authoring tool for adaptive e-learning by using characterization of extended media streaming technologies. The distributed approach is based on an ontology-based model.…

  4. Project management web tools at the MICE experiment

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Coney, L. R.; Tunnell, C. D.

    2012-12-01

    Project management tools like Trac are commonly used within the open-source community to coordinate projects. The Muon Ionization Cooling Experiment (MICE) uses the project management web application Redmine to host mice.rl.ac.uk. Many groups within the experiment have a Redmine project: analysis, computing and software (including offline, online, controls and monitoring, and database subgroups), executive board, and operations. All of these groups use the website to communicate, track effort, develop schedules, and maintain documentation. The issue tracker is a rich tool that is used to identify tasks and monitor progress within groups on timescales ranging from immediate and unexpected problems to milestones that cover the life of the experiment. It allows the prioritization of tasks according to time-sensitivity, while providing a searchable record of work that has been done. This record of work can be used to measure both individual and overall group activity, identify areas lacking sufficient personnel or effort, and as a measure of progress against the schedule. Given that MICE, like many particle physics experiments, is an international community, such a system is required to allow easy communication within a global collaboration. Unlike systems that are purely wiki-based, the structure of a project management tool like Redmine allows information to be maintained in a more structured and logical fashion.

  5. Web Time-Management Tool

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    2000-01-01

    Oak Grove Reactor, developed by Oak Grove Systems, is a new software program that allows users to integrate workflow processes. It can be used with portable communication devices. The software can join e-mail, calendar/scheduling and legacy applications into one interactive system via the web. Priority tasks and due dates are organized and highlighted to keep the user up to date with developments. Reactor works with existing software and few new skills are needed to use it. Using a web browser, a user can can work on something while other users can work on the same procedure or view its status while it is being worked on at another site. The software was developed by the Jet Propulsion Lab and originally put to use at Johnson Space Center.

  6. Do Web 2.0 Right

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Light, Daniel

    2011-01-01

    The author and his colleague, Deborah Polin, traveled around the United States to get a first-hand look at how teachers are developing successful Web 2.0 activities for their classrooms. With funding from Intel, they interviewed 39 educators in 22 schools throughout the country about how they employed these tools in their classrooms in innovative…

  7. Overview of Nuclear Physics Data: Databases, Web Applications and Teaching Tools

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    McCutchan, Elizabeth

    2017-01-01

    The mission of the United States Nuclear Data Program (USNDP) is to provide current, accurate, and authoritative data for use in pure and applied areas of nuclear science and engineering. This is accomplished by compiling, evaluating, and disseminating extensive datasets. Our main products include the Evaluated Nuclear Structure File (ENSDF) containing information on nuclear structure and decay properties and the Evaluated Nuclear Data File (ENDF) containing information on neutron-induced reactions. The National Nuclear Data Center (NNDC), through the website www.nndc.bnl.gov, provides web-based retrieval systems for these and many other databases. In addition, the NNDC hosts several on-line physics tools, useful for calculating various quantities relating to basic nuclear physics. In this talk, I will first introduce the quantities which are evaluated and recommended in our databases. I will then outline the searching capabilities which allow one to quickly and efficiently retrieve data. Finally, I will demonstrate how the database searches and web applications can provide effective teaching tools concerning the structure of nuclei and how they interact. Work supported by the Office of Nuclear Physics, Office of Science of the U.S. Department of Energy under Contract No. DE-AC02-98CH10886.

  8. 2B-Alert Web: An Open-Access Tool for Predicting the Effects of Sleep/Wake Schedules and Caffeine Consumption on Neurobehavioral Performance.

    PubMed

    Reifman, Jaques; Kumar, Kamal; Wesensten, Nancy J; Tountas, Nikolaos A; Balkin, Thomas J; Ramakrishnan, Sridhar

    2016-12-01

    Computational tools that predict the effects of daily sleep/wake amounts on neurobehavioral performance are critical components of fatigue management systems, allowing for the identification of periods during which individuals are at increased risk for performance errors. However, none of the existing computational tools is publicly available, and the commercially available tools do not account for the beneficial effects of caffeine on performance, limiting their practical utility. Here, we introduce 2B-Alert Web, an open-access tool for predicting neurobehavioral performance, which accounts for the effects of sleep/wake schedules, time of day, and caffeine consumption, while incorporating the latest scientific findings in sleep restriction, sleep extension, and recovery sleep. We combined our validated Unified Model of Performance and our validated caffeine model to form a single, integrated modeling framework instantiated as a Web-enabled tool. 2B-Alert Web allows users to input daily sleep/wake schedules and caffeine consumption (dosage and time) to obtain group-average predictions of neurobehavioral performance based on psychomotor vigilance tasks. 2B-Alert Web is accessible at: https://2b-alert-web.bhsai.org. The 2B-Alert Web tool allows users to obtain predictions for mean response time, mean reciprocal response time, and number of lapses. The graphing tool allows for simultaneous display of up to seven different sleep/wake and caffeine schedules. The schedules and corresponding predicted outputs can be saved as a Microsoft Excel file; the corresponding plots can be saved as an image file. The schedules and predictions are erased when the user logs off, thereby maintaining privacy and confidentiality. The publicly accessible 2B-Alert Web tool is available for operators, schedulers, and neurobehavioral scientists as well as the general public to determine the impact of any given sleep/wake schedule, caffeine consumption, and time of day on performance of a

  9. The iMeteo is a web-based weather visualization tool

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Tuni San-Martín, Max; San-Martín, Daniel; Cofiño, Antonio S.

    2010-05-01

    iMeteo is a web-based weather visualization tool. Designed with an extensible J2EE architecture, it is capable of displaying information from heterogeneous data sources such as gridded data from numerical models (in NetCDF format) or databases of local predictions. All this information is presented in a user-friendly way, being able to choose the specific tool to display data (maps, graphs, information tables) and customize it to desired locations. *Modular Display System* Visualization of the data is achieved through a set of mini tools called widgets. A user can add them at will and arrange them around the screen easily with a drag and drop movement. They can be of various types and each can be configured separately, forming a really powerful and configurable system. The "Map" is the most complex widget, since it can show several variables simultaneously (either gridded or point-based) through a layered display. Other useful widgets are the the "Histogram", which generates a graph with the frequency characteristics of a variable and the "Timeline" which shows the time evolution of a variable at a given location in an interactive way. *Customization and security* Following the trends in web development, the user can easily customize the way data is displayed. Due to programming in client side with technologies like AJAX, the interaction with the application is similar to the desktop ones because there are rapid respone times. If a user is registered then he could also save his settings in the database, allowing access from any system with Internet access with his particular setup. There is particular emphasis on application security. The administrator can define a set of user profiles, which may have associated restrictions on access to certain data sources, geographic areas or time intervals.

  10. CAS-viewer: web-based tool for splicing-guided integrative analysis of multi-omics cancer data.

    PubMed

    Han, Seonggyun; Kim, Dongwook; Kim, Youngjun; Choi, Kanghoon; Miller, Jason E; Kim, Dokyoon; Lee, Younghee

    2018-04-20

    The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) project is a public resource that provides transcriptomic, DNA sequence, methylation, and clinical data for 33 cancer types. Transforming the large size and high complexity of TCGA cancer genome data into integrated knowledge can be useful to promote cancer research. Alternative splicing (AS) is a key regulatory mechanism of genes in human cancer development and in the interaction with epigenetic factors. Therefore, AS-guided integration of existing TCGA data sets will make it easier to gain insight into the genetic architecture of cancer risk and related outcomes. There are already existing tools analyzing and visualizing alternative mRNA splicing patterns for large-scale RNA-seq experiments. However, these existing web-based tools are limited to the analysis of individual TCGA data sets at a time, such as only transcriptomic information. We implemented CAS-viewer (integrative analysis of Cancer genome data based on Alternative Splicing), a web-based tool leveraging multi-cancer omics data from TCGA. It illustrates alternative mRNA splicing patterns along with methylation, miRNAs, and SNPs, and then provides an analysis tool to link differential transcript expression ratio to methylation, miRNA, and splicing regulatory elements for 33 cancer types. Moreover, one can analyze AS patterns with clinical data to identify potential transcripts associated with different survival outcome for each cancer. CAS-viewer is a web-based application for transcript isoform-driven integration of multi-omics data in multiple cancer types and will aid in the visualization and possible discovery of biomarkers for cancer by integrating multi-omics data from TCGA.

  11. Using WebCT as a Supplemental Tool to Enhance Critical Thinking and Engagement among Developmental Reading Students

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Burgess, Melissa L.

    2009-01-01

    The purpose of this research was to examine possible outcomes of developmental students' critical thinking and motivation to read when the online learning community, WebCT, was implemented. My role, in addition to instructor, was that of participant-observer. I implemented WebCT tools, such as discussion board and chat, over a four-month period…

  12. Evaluation Of The Advanced Operating System Of The Ann Arbor Transportation Authority : AATA Web Survey

    DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

    1999-01-01

    During 1997, visitors to the Ann Arbor (Michigan) Transportation Authority's worldwide web site were invited to complete an electronic questionnaire about their experience with the site. Eighty surveys were collected, representing a non-scientific se...

  13. Digital plagiarism - The web giveth and the web shall taketh

    PubMed Central

    Presti, David E

    2000-01-01

    Publishing students' and researchers' papers on the World Wide Web (WWW) facilitates the sharing of information within and between academic communities. However, the ease of copying and transporting digital information leaves these authors' ideas open to plagiarism. Using tools such as the Plagiarism.org database, which compares submissions to reports and papers available on the Internet, could discover instances of plagiarism, revolutionize the peer review process, and raise the quality of published research everywhere. PMID:11720925

  14. Allen Brain Atlas-Driven Visualizations: a web-based gene expression energy visualization tool.

    PubMed

    Zaldivar, Andrew; Krichmar, Jeffrey L

    2014-01-01

    The Allen Brain Atlas-Driven Visualizations (ABADV) is a publicly accessible web-based tool created to retrieve and visualize expression energy data from the Allen Brain Atlas (ABA) across multiple genes and brain structures. Though the ABA offers their own search engine and software for researchers to view their growing collection of online public data sets, including extensive gene expression and neuroanatomical data from human and mouse brain, many of their tools limit the amount of genes and brain structures researchers can view at once. To complement their work, ABADV generates multiple pie charts, bar charts and heat maps of expression energy values for any given set of genes and brain structures. Such a suite of free and easy-to-understand visualizations allows for easy comparison of gene expression across multiple brain areas. In addition, each visualization links back to the ABA so researchers may view a summary of the experimental detail. ABADV is currently supported on modern web browsers and is compatible with expression energy data from the Allen Mouse Brain Atlas in situ hybridization data. By creating this web application, researchers can immediately obtain and survey numerous amounts of expression energy data from the ABA, which they can then use to supplement their work or perform meta-analysis. In the future, we hope to enable ABADV across multiple data resources.

  15. deepTools: a flexible platform for exploring deep-sequencing data.

    PubMed

    Ramírez, Fidel; Dündar, Friederike; Diehl, Sarah; Grüning, Björn A; Manke, Thomas

    2014-07-01

    We present a Galaxy based web server for processing and visualizing deeply sequenced data. The web server's core functionality consists of a suite of newly developed tools, called deepTools, that enable users with little bioinformatic background to explore the results of their sequencing experiments in a standardized setting. Users can upload pre-processed files with continuous data in standard formats and generate heatmaps and summary plots in a straight-forward, yet highly customizable manner. In addition, we offer several tools for the analysis of files containing aligned reads and enable efficient and reproducible generation of normalized coverage files. As a modular and open-source platform, deepTools can easily be expanded and customized to future demands and developments. The deepTools webserver is freely available at http://deeptools.ie-freiburg.mpg.de and is accompanied by extensive documentation and tutorials aimed at conveying the principles of deep-sequencing data analysis. The web server can be used without registration. deepTools can be installed locally either stand-alone or as part of Galaxy. © The Author(s) 2014. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Nucleic Acids Research.

  16. Emerging Instructional Technologies: Exploring the Extent of Faculty Use of Web 2.0 Tools at a Midwestern Community College

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Daher, Tareq; Lazarevic, Bojan

    2014-01-01

    The purpose of this research is to provide insight into the several aspects of instructional use of emerging web-based technologies. The study first explores the extent of Web 2.0 technology integration into face-to-face classroom activities. In this phase, the main focus of research interests was on the types and dynamics of Web 2.0 tools used by…

  17. An Educational Tool for Browsing the Semantic Web

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Yoo, Sujin; Kim, Younghwan; Park, Seongbin

    2013-01-01

    The Semantic Web is an extension of the current Web where information is represented in a machine processable way. It is not separate from the current Web and one of the confusions that novice users might have is where the Semantic Web is. In fact, users can easily encounter RDF documents that are components of the Semantic Web while they navigate…

  18. Email recruitment to use web decision support tools for pneumonia.

    PubMed

    Flanagan, James R; Peterson, Michael; Dayton, Charles; Strommer Pace, Lori; Plank, Andrew; Walker, Kristy; Carlson, William S

    2002-01-01

    Application of guidelines to improve clinical decisions for Community Acquired Pneumonia (CAP) patients depends on accurate information about specific facts of each case and on presenting guideline support at the time decisions are being made. We report here on a system designed to solicit information from physicians about their CAP patients in order to classify CAP and present appropriate guidelines for type of care, length of stay, and use of antibiotics. We used elements of three existing information systems to create a achieve these goals: professionals coding diagnoses captured by the existing clinical information system (CIS), email, and web-based decision support tools including a pneumonia severity evaluation tool (SET). The non-secure IS components (email and web) were able to link to information in the CIS using tokens that do not reveal confidential patient-identifiable information. We examined their response to this strategy and the accuracy of pneumonia classification using this approach compared to chart review as a gold standard. On average physicians responded to email solicitations 50% of the time over the 14 month study. Also using this standard, we examined various information triggers for case finding. Professional coding of the primary reason for admission as pneumonia was fairly sensitive as an indicator of CAP. Physician use of the web SET was insensitive but fairly specific. Pneumonia classification using the SET was very reliable compared to experts' chart review using the same algorithm. We examined the distribution of severity of pneumonia for cases of pneumonia found by the various information triggers and for each severity the average length of stay. The distribution found by both chart review and by SET has demonstrated a shift toward more severe cases being admitted compared to only 3 years ago. The length of stay for level of severity is above expectations published by guidelines even for cases of true CAP by chart review. We suggest

  19. Computer-Based Instruction Authoring Tools System (CATS): Lesson Maintenance

    DTIC Science & Technology

    1990-07-01

    Tols-System ( CATS ): Lesson Maintenance Vol N. Hutton Michael R. Flaningam Barbara Tarker Ann Rybowlak Susan Sulzbach Mark Lyon Brian Thomason DTC"",~1...Authoring Tools &ystem ( CATS ): Lesson Maintenance Vel N. Hulton Michael R. Flaningam Barbara Tarker Ann Rybowiak Navy Personnel Research and...lools •ystem ( CATS ): Program Element 0604722A Lesson Maintenance 6. AUTHOR(S) V. N. Huhoa, N. R. Fl1ingam. B. Tarktr, A. Rybowiak. S. Sulzbach. M

  20. Perceptions of Pedagogical Formation Students about Web 2.0 Tools and Educational Practices

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Avci Yücel, Ümmühan

    2017-01-01

    This study aims to examine pedagogical formation students' perceptions about Web 2.0 tools and educational practices. A case study approach forms the methodological framework of this study. This study was conducted with 42 pedagogical formation students of an Instructional Technology and Material Design course during the 2014-2015 spring semester.…

  1. SUMO: operation and maintenance management web tool for astronomical observatories

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Mujica-Alvarez, Emma; Pérez-Calpena, Ana; García-Vargas, María. Luisa

    2014-08-01

    SUMO is an Operation and Maintenance Management web tool, which allows managing the operation and maintenance activities and resources required for the exploitation of a complex facility. SUMO main capabilities are: information repository, assets and stock control, tasks scheduler, executed tasks archive, configuration and anomalies control and notification and users management. The information needed to operate and maintain the system must be initially stored at the tool database. SUMO shall automatically schedule the periodical tasks and facilitates the searching and programming of the non-periodical tasks. Tasks planning can be visualized in different formats and dynamically edited to be adjusted to the available resources, anomalies, dates and other constrains that can arise during daily operation. SUMO shall provide warnings to the users notifying potential conflicts related to the required personal availability or the spare stock for the scheduled tasks. To conclude, SUMO has been designed as a tool to help during the operation management of a scientific facility, and in particular an astronomical observatory. This is done by controlling all operating parameters: personal, assets, spare and supply stocks, tasks and time constrains.

  2. Therapeutic uses of the WebCam in child psychiatry.

    PubMed

    Chlebowski, Susan; Fremont, Wanda

    2011-01-01

    The authors provide examples for the use of the WebCam as a therapeutic tool in child psychiatry, discussing cases to demonstrate the application of the WebCam, which is most often used in psychiatry training programs during resident supervision and for case presentations. Six cases illustrate the use of the WebCam in individual and family therapy. The WebCam, used during individual sessions, can facilitate the development of prosocial skills. Comparing individual WebCam video sessions can help to evaluate the effectiveness of medication and progress in therapy. The WebCam has proven to be useful in psycho-education, facilitating communication, and treating children and families. The applications of this technology may include cognitive-behavioral therapy, dialectical-behavioral, and group therapy.

  3. Dynamic selection mechanism for quality of service aware web services

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    D'Mello, Demian Antony; Ananthanarayana, V. S.

    2010-02-01

    A web service is an interface of the software component that can be accessed by standard Internet protocols. The web service technology enables an application to application communication and interoperability. The increasing number of web service providers throughout the globe have produced numerous web services providing the same or similar functionality. This necessitates the use of tools and techniques to search the suitable services available over the Web. UDDI (universal description, discovery and integration) is the first initiative to find the suitable web services based on the requester's functional demands. However, the requester's requirements may also include non-functional aspects like quality of service (QoS). In this paper, the authors define a QoS model for QoS aware and business driven web service publishing and selection. The authors propose a QoS requirement format for the requesters, to specify their complex demands on QoS for the web service selection. The authors define a tree structure called quality constraint tree (QCT) to represent the requester's variety of requirements on QoS properties having varied preferences. The paper proposes a QoS broker based architecture for web service selection, which facilitates the requesters to specify their QoS requirements to select qualitatively optimal web service. A web service selection algorithm is presented, which ranks the functionally similar web services based on the degree of satisfaction of the requester's QoS requirements and preferences. The paper defines web service provider qualities to distinguish qualitatively competitive web services. The paper also presents the modelling and selection mechanism for the requester's alternative constraints defined on the QoS. The authors implement the QoS broker based system to prove the correctness of the proposed web service selection mechanism.

  4. Development, implementation and pilot evaluation of a Web-based Virtual Patient Case Simulation environment--Web-SP.

    PubMed

    Zary, Nabil; Johnson, Gunilla; Boberg, Jonas; Fors, Uno G H

    2006-02-21

    The Web-based Simulation of Patients (Web-SP) project was initiated in order to facilitate the use of realistic and interactive virtual patients (VP) in medicine and healthcare education. Web-SP focuses on moving beyond the technology savvy teachers, when integrating simulation-based education into health sciences curricula, by making the creation and use of virtual patients easier. The project strives to provide a common generic platform for design/creation, management, evaluation and sharing of web-based virtual patients. The aim of this study was to evaluate if it was possible to develop a web-based virtual patient case simulation environment where the entire case authoring process might be handled by teachers and which would be flexible enough to be used in different healthcare disciplines. The Web-SP system was constructed to support easy authoring, management and presentation of virtual patient cases. The case authoring environment was found to facilitate for teachers to create full-fledged patient cases without the assistance of computer specialists. Web-SP was successfully implemented at several universities by taking into account key factors such as cost, access, security, scalability and flexibility. Pilot evaluations in medical, dentistry and pharmacy courses shows that students regarded Web-SP as easy to use, engaging and to be of educational value. Cases adapted for all three disciplines were judged to be of significant educational value by the course leaders. The Web-SP system seems to fulfil the aim of providing a common generic platform for creation, management and evaluation of web-based virtual patient cases. The responses regarding the authoring environment indicated that the system might be user-friendly enough to appeal to a majority of the academic staff. In terms of implementation strengths, Web-SP seems to fulfil most needs from course directors and teachers from various educational institutions and disciplines. The system is currently in

  5. Web-phreeq: a WWW instructional tool for modeling the distribution of chemical species in water

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Saini-Eidukat, Bernhardt; Yahin, Andrew

    1999-05-01

    A WWW-based tool, WEB-PHREEQ, was developed for classroom teaching and for routine calculation of low temperature aqueous speciation. Accessible with any computer that has an internet-connected forms-capable WWW-browser, WEB-PHREEQ provides user interface and other support for modeling, creates a properly formatted input file, passes it to the public domain program PHREEQC and returns the output to the WWW browser. Users can calculate the equilibrium speciation of a solution over a range of temperatures or can react solid minerals or gases with a particular water and examine the resulting chemistry. WEB-PHREEQ is one of a number of interactive distributed-computing programs available on the WWW that are of interest to geoscientists.

  6. Exploring JavaScript and ROOT technologies to create Web-based ATLAS analysis and monitoring tools

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Sánchez Pineda, A.

    2015-12-01

    We explore the potential of current web applications to create online interfaces that allow the visualization, interaction and real cut-based physics analysis and monitoring of processes through a web browser. The project consists in the initial development of web- based and cloud computing services to allow students and researchers to perform fast and very useful cut-based analysis on a browser, reading and using real data and official Monte- Carlo simulations stored in ATLAS computing facilities. Several tools are considered: ROOT, JavaScript and HTML. Our study case is the current cut-based H → ZZ → llqq analysis of the ATLAS experiment. Preliminary but satisfactory results have been obtained online.

  7. NaviCell Web Service for network-based data visualization.

    PubMed

    Bonnet, Eric; Viara, Eric; Kuperstein, Inna; Calzone, Laurence; Cohen, David P A; Barillot, Emmanuel; Zinovyev, Andrei

    2015-07-01

    Data visualization is an essential element of biological research, required for obtaining insights and formulating new hypotheses on mechanisms of health and disease. NaviCell Web Service is a tool for network-based visualization of 'omics' data which implements several data visual representation methods and utilities for combining them together. NaviCell Web Service uses Google Maps and semantic zooming to browse large biological network maps, represented in various formats, together with different types of the molecular data mapped on top of them. For achieving this, the tool provides standard heatmaps, barplots and glyphs as well as the novel map staining technique for grasping large-scale trends in numerical values (such as whole transcriptome) projected onto a pathway map. The web service provides a server mode, which allows automating visualization tasks and retrieving data from maps via RESTful (standard HTTP) calls. Bindings to different programming languages are provided (Python and R). We illustrate the purpose of the tool with several case studies using pathway maps created by different research groups, in which data visualization provides new insights into molecular mechanisms involved in systemic diseases such as cancer and neurodegenerative diseases. © The Author(s) 2015. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Nucleic Acids Research.

  8. Information Architecture for the Web: The IA Matrix Approach to Designing Children's Portals.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Large, Andrew; Beheshti, Jamshid; Cole, Charles

    2002-01-01

    Presents a matrix that can serve as a tool for designing the information architecture of a Web portal in a logical and systematic manner. Highlights include interfaces; metaphors; navigation; interaction; information retrieval; and an example of a children's Web portal to provide access to museum information. (Author/LRW)

  9. Web Search Studies: Multidisciplinary Perspectives on Web Search Engines

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Zimmer, Michael

    Perhaps the most significant tool of our internet age is the web search engine, providing a powerful interface for accessing the vast amount of information available on the world wide web and beyond. While still in its infancy compared to the knowledge tools that precede it - such as the dictionary or encyclopedia - the impact of web search engines on society and culture has already received considerable attention from a variety of academic disciplines and perspectives. This article aims to organize a meta-discipline of “web search studies,” centered around a nucleus of major research on web search engines from five key perspectives: technical foundations and evaluations; transaction log analyses; user studies; political, ethical, and cultural critiques; and legal and policy analyses.

  10. A System for Web-based Access to the HSOS Database

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Lin, G.

    Huairou Solar Observing Station's (HSOS) magnetogram and dopplergram are world-class instruments. Access to their data has opened to the world. Web-based access to the data will provide a powerful, convenient tool for data searching and solar physics. It is necessary that our data be provided to users via the Web when it is opened to the world. In this presentation, the author describes general design and programming construction of the system. The system will be generated by PHP and MySQL. The author also introduces basic feature of PHP and MySQL.

  11. A web-based tool for groundwater mapping and drought analysis

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Christensen, S.; Burns, M.; Jones, N.; Strassberg, G.

    2012-12-01

    In 2011-2012, the state of Texas saw the worst one-year drought on record. Fluctuations in gravity measured by GRACE satellites indicate that as much as 100 cubic kilometers of water was lost during this period. Much of this came from reservoirs and shallow soil moisture, but a significant amount came from aquifers. In response to this crisis, a Texas Drought Technology Steering Committee (TDTSC) consisting of academics and water managers was formed to develop new tools and strategies to assist the state in monitoring, predicting, and responding to drought events. In this presentation, we describe one of the tools that was developed as part of this effort. When analyzing the impact of drought on groundwater levels, it is fairly common to examine time series data at selected monitoring wells. However, accurately assessing impacts and trends requires both spatial and temporal analysis involving the development of detailed water level maps at various scales. Creating such maps in a flexible and rapid fashion is critical for effective drought analysis, but can be challenging due to the massive amounts of data involved and the processing required to generate such maps. Furthermore, wells are typically not sampled at the same points in time, and so developing a water table map for a particular date requires both spatial and temporal interpolation of water elevations. To address this challenge, a Cloud-based water level mapping system was developed for the state of Texas. The system is based on the Texas Water Development Board (TWDB) groundwater database, but can be adapted to use other databases as well. The system involves a set of ArcGIS workflows running on a server with a web-based front end and a Google Earth plug-in. A temporal interpolation geoprocessing tool was developed to estimate the piezometric heads for all wells in a given region at a specific date using a regression analysis. This interpolation tool is coupled with other geoprocessing tools to filter

  12. A Systematic Literature Review on Evaluation of Digital Tools for Authoring Evidence-Based Clinical Guidelines.

    PubMed

    Khodambashi, Soudabeh; Nytrø, Øystein

    2017-01-01

    To facilitate the clinical guideline (GL) development process, different groups of researchers have proposed tools that enable computer-supported tools for authoring and publishing GLs. In a previous study we interviewed GL authors in different Norwegian institutions and identified tool shortcomings. In this follow-up study our goal is to explore to what extent GL authoring tools have been evaluated by researchers, guideline organisations, or GL authors. This article presents results from a systematic literature review of evaluation (including usability) of GL authoring tools. A controlled database search and backward snow-balling were used to identify relevant articles. From the 12692 abstracts found, 188 papers were fully reviewed and 26 papers were identified as relevant. The GRADEPro tool has attracted some evaluation, however popular tools and platforms such as DECIDE, Doctor Evidence, JBI-SUMARI, G-I-N library have not been subject to specific evaluation from an authoring perspective. Therefore, we found that little attention was paid to the evaluation of the tools in general. We could not find any evaluation relevant to how tools integrate and support the complex GL development workflow. The results of this paper are highly relevant to GL authors, tool developers and GL publishing organisations in order to improve and control the GL development and maintenance process.

  13. Recommender System and Web 2.0 Tools to Enhance a Blended Learning Model

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Hoic-Bozic, Natasa; Dlab, Martina Holenko; Mornar, Vedran

    2016-01-01

    Blended learning models that combine face-to-face and online learning are of great importance in modern higher education. However, their development should be in line with the recent changes in e-learning that emphasize a student-centered approach and use tools available on the Web to support the learning process. This paper presents research on…

  14. RxPATROL: a Web-based tool for combating pharmacy theft.

    PubMed

    Smith, Meredith Y; Graham, J Aaron; Haddox, J David; Steffey, Amy

    2009-01-01

    To report the incidence of pharmacy-related burglaries and robberies and characteristics of pharmacies where such crimes have occurred using recent data from Rx Pattern Analysis Tracking Robberies & Other Losses (RxPATROL), a national Web-based information clearinghouse on pharmacy-related theft of prescription medications and over-the-counter products. Descriptive, nonexperimental study. United States between 2005 and 2006. Not applicable. Not applicable. Number of pharmacy theft reports received; incident type, date, and location; point of entry; and pharmacy security features. Between 2005 and 2006, 202 pharmacy burglary and 299 pharmacy robbery reports from 45 different states were filed with RxPATROL. More than 70% of pharmacies reporting such crimes lacked a security camera. Among those reporting a burglary, 60% lacked dead bolt locks, a solid exterior door, a motion detector device, or a safe or vault for storage of controlled substances. Burglars most often obtained access to the pharmacy via the front door. RxPATROL is a Web-based tool that can assist pharmacies and law enforcement in collaborating more effectively to combat and prevent pharmacy-related crimes.

  15. Development, implementation and pilot evaluation of a Web-based Virtual Patient Case Simulation environment – Web-SP

    PubMed Central

    Zary, Nabil; Johnson, Gunilla; Boberg, Jonas; Fors, Uno GH

    2006-01-01

    Background The Web-based Simulation of Patients (Web-SP) project was initiated in order to facilitate the use of realistic and interactive virtual patients (VP) in medicine and healthcare education. Web-SP focuses on moving beyond the technology savvy teachers, when integrating simulation-based education into health sciences curricula, by making the creation and use of virtual patients easier. The project strives to provide a common generic platform for design/creation, management, evaluation and sharing of web-based virtual patients. The aim of this study was to evaluate if it was possible to develop a web-based virtual patient case simulation environment where the entire case authoring process might be handled by teachers and which would be flexible enough to be used in different healthcare disciplines. Results The Web-SP system was constructed to support easy authoring, management and presentation of virtual patient cases. The case authoring environment was found to facilitate for teachers to create full-fledged patient cases without the assistance of computer specialists. Web-SP was successfully implemented at several universities by taking into account key factors such as cost, access, security, scalability and flexibility. Pilot evaluations in medical, dentistry and pharmacy courses shows that students regarded Web-SP as easy to use, engaging and to be of educational value. Cases adapted for all three disciplines were judged to be of significant educational value by the course leaders. Conclusion The Web-SP system seems to fulfil the aim of providing a common generic platform for creation, management and evaluation of web-based virtual patient cases. The responses regarding the authoring environment indicated that the system might be user-friendly enough to appeal to a majority of the academic staff. In terms of implementation strengths, Web-SP seems to fulfil most needs from course directors and teachers from various educational institutions and disciplines

  16. 3Drefine: an interactive web server for efficient protein structure refinement.

    PubMed

    Bhattacharya, Debswapna; Nowotny, Jackson; Cao, Renzhi; Cheng, Jianlin

    2016-07-08

    3Drefine is an interactive web server for consistent and computationally efficient protein structure refinement with the capability to perform web-based statistical and visual analysis. The 3Drefine refinement protocol utilizes iterative optimization of hydrogen bonding network combined with atomic-level energy minimization on the optimized model using a composite physics and knowledge-based force fields for efficient protein structure refinement. The method has been extensively evaluated on blind CASP experiments as well as on large-scale and diverse benchmark datasets and exhibits consistent improvement over the initial structure in both global and local structural quality measures. The 3Drefine web server allows for convenient protein structure refinement through a text or file input submission, email notification, provided example submission and is freely available without any registration requirement. The server also provides comprehensive analysis of submissions through various energy and statistical feedback and interactive visualization of multiple refined models through the JSmol applet that is equipped with numerous protein model analysis tools. The web server has been extensively tested and used by many users. As a result, the 3Drefine web server conveniently provides a useful tool easily accessible to the community. The 3Drefine web server has been made publicly available at the URL: http://sysbio.rnet.missouri.edu/3Drefine/. © The Author(s) 2016. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Nucleic Acids Research.

  17. TSVdb: a web-tool for TCGA splicing variants analysis.

    PubMed

    Sun, Wenjie; Duan, Ting; Ye, Panmeng; Chen, Kelie; Zhang, Guanling; Lai, Maode; Zhang, Honghe

    2018-05-29

    Collaborative projects such as The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) have generated various -omics and clinical data on cancer. Many computational tools have been developed to facilitate the study of the molecular characterization of tumors using data from the TCGA. Alternative splicing of a gene produces splicing variants, and accumulating evidence has revealed its essential role in cancer-related processes, implying the urgent need to discover tumor-specific isoforms and uncover their potential functions in tumorigenesis. We developed TSVdb, a web-based tool, to explore alternative splicing based on TCGA samples with 30 clinical variables from 33 tumors. TSVdb has an integrated and well-proportioned interface for visualization of the clinical data, gene expression, usage of exons/junctions and splicing patterns. Researchers can interpret the isoform expression variations between or across clinical subgroups and estimate the relationships between isoforms and patient prognosis. TSVdb is available at http://www.tsvdb.com , and the source code is available at https://github.com/wenjie1991/TSVdb . TSVdb will inspire oncologists and accelerate isoform-level advances in cancer research.

  18. A Web-Based Learning Tool Improves Student Performance in Statistics: A Randomized Masked Trial

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Gonzalez, Jose A.; Jover, Lluis; Cobo, Erik; Munoz, Pilar

    2010-01-01

    Background: e-status is a web-based tool able to generate different statistical exercises and to provide immediate feedback to students' answers. Although the use of Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) is becoming widespread in undergraduate education, there are few experimental studies evaluating its effects on learning. Method: All…

  19. The AIChE "Concept Warehouse": A Web-Based Tool to Promote Concept-Based Instruction

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Koretsky, Milo D.; Falconer, John L.; Brooks, Bill J.; Gilbuena, Debra M.; Silverstein, David L.; Smith, Christina; Miletic, Marina

    2014-01-01

    This paper describes the "AIChE Concept Warehouse," a recently developed web-based instructional tool that enables faculty within the discipline of chemical engineering to better provide their students concept-based instruction. It currently houses over 2,000 concept questions and 10 concept inventories pertinent to courses throughout…

  20. miRiadne: a web tool for consistent integration of miRNA nomenclature.

    PubMed

    Bonnal, Raoul J P; Rossi, Riccardo L; Carpi, Donatella; Ranzani, Valeria; Abrignani, Sergio; Pagani, Massimiliano

    2015-07-01

    The miRBase is the official miRNA repository which keeps the annotation updated on newly discovered miRNAs: it is also used as a reference for the design of miRNA profiling platforms. Nomenclature ambiguities generated by loosely updated platforms and design errors lead to incompatibilities among platforms, even from the same vendor. Published miRNA lists are thus generated with different profiling platforms that refer to diverse and not updated annotations. This greatly compromises searches, comparisons and analyses that rely on miRNA names only without taking into account the mature sequences, which is particularly critic when such analyses are carried over automatically. In this paper we introduce miRiadne, a web tool to harmonize miRNA nomenclature, which takes into account the original miRBase versions from 10 up to 21, and annotations of 40 common profiling platforms from nine brands that we manually curated. miRiadne uses the miRNA mature sequence to link miRBase versions and/or platforms to prevent nomenclature ambiguities. miRiadne was designed to simplify and support biologists and bioinformaticians in re-annotating their own miRNA lists and/or data sets. As Ariadne helped Theseus in escaping the mythological maze, miRiadne will help the miRNA researcher in escaping the nomenclature maze. miRiadne is freely accessible from the URL http://www.miriadne.org. © The Author(s) 2015. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Nucleic Acids Research.

  1. BEAM web server: a tool for structural RNA motif discovery.

    PubMed

    Pietrosanto, Marco; Adinolfi, Marta; Casula, Riccardo; Ausiello, Gabriele; Ferrè, Fabrizio; Helmer-Citterich, Manuela

    2018-03-15

    RNA structural motif finding is a relevant problem that becomes computationally hard when working on high-throughput data (e.g. eCLIP, PAR-CLIP), often represented by thousands of RNA molecules. Currently, the BEAM server is the only web tool capable to handle tens of thousands of RNA in input with a motif discovery procedure that is only limited by the current secondary structure prediction accuracies. The recently developed method BEAM (BEAr Motifs finder) can analyze tens of thousands of RNA molecules and identify RNA secondary structure motifs associated to a measure of their statistical significance. BEAM is extremely fast thanks to the BEAR encoding that transforms each RNA secondary structure in a string of characters. BEAM also exploits the evolutionary knowledge contained in a substitution matrix of secondary structure elements, extracted from the RFAM database of families of homologous RNAs. The BEAM web server has been designed to streamline data pre-processing by automatically handling folding and encoding of RNA sequences, giving users a choice for the preferred folding program. The server provides an intuitive and informative results page with the list of secondary structure motifs identified, the logo of each motif, its significance, graphic representation and information about its position in the RNA molecules sharing it. The web server is freely available at http://beam.uniroma2.it/ and it is implemented in NodeJS and Python with all major browsers supported. marco.pietrosanto@uniroma2.it. Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online.

  2. Web 2.0 and internet social networking: a new tool for disaster management?--lessons from Taiwan.

    PubMed

    Huang, Cheng-Min; Chan, Edward; Hyder, Adnan A

    2010-10-06

    Internet social networking tools and the emerging web 2.0 technologies are providing a new way for web users and health workers in information sharing and knowledge dissemination. Based on the characters of immediate, two-way and large scale of impact, the internet social networking tools have been utilized as a solution in emergency response during disasters. This paper highlights the use of internet social networking in disaster emergency response and public health management of disasters by focusing on a case study of the typhoon Morakot disaster in Taiwan. In the case of typhoon disaster in Taiwan, internet social networking and mobile technology were found to be helpful for community residents, professional emergency rescuers, and government agencies in gathering and disseminating real-time information, regarding volunteer recruitment and relief supplies allocation. We noted that if internet tools are to be integrated in the development of emergency response system, the accessibility, accuracy, validity, feasibility, privacy and the scalability of itself should be carefully considered especially in the effort of applying it in resource poor settings. This paper seeks to promote an internet-based emergency response system by integrating internet social networking and information communication technology into central government disaster management system. Web-based networking provides two-way communication which establishes a reliable and accessible tunnel for proximal and distal users in disaster preparedness and management.

  3. Truke, a web tool to check for and handle excel misidentified gene symbols.

    PubMed

    Mallona, Izaskun; Peinado, Miguel A

    2017-03-21

    Genomic datasets accompanying scientific publications show a surprisingly high rate of gene name corruption. This error is generated when files and tables are imported into Microsoft Excel and certain gene symbols are automatically converted into dates. We have developed Truke, a fexible Web tool to detect, tag and fix, if possible, such misconversions. Aside, Truke is language and regional locale-aware, providing file format customization (decimal symbol, field sepator, etc.) following user's preferences. Truke is a data format conversion tool with a unique corrupted gene symbol detection utility. Truke is freely available without registration at http://maplab.cat/truke .

  4. Web-based GIS: the vector-borne disease airline importation risk (VBD-AIR) tool

    PubMed Central

    2012-01-01

    Background Over the past century, the size and complexity of the air travel network has increased dramatically. Nowadays, there are 29.6 million scheduled flights per year and around 2.7 billion passengers are transported annually. The rapid expansion of the network increasingly connects regions of endemic vector-borne disease with the rest of the world, resulting in challenges to health systems worldwide in terms of vector-borne pathogen importation and disease vector invasion events. Here we describe the development of a user-friendly Web-based GIS tool: the Vector-Borne Disease Airline Importation Risk Tool (VBD-AIR), to help better define the roles of airports and airlines in the transmission and spread of vector-borne diseases. Methods Spatial datasets on modeled global disease and vector distributions, as well as climatic and air network traffic data were assembled. These were combined to derive relative risk metrics via air travel for imported infections, imported vectors and onward transmission, and incorporated into a three-tier server architecture in a Model-View-Controller framework with distributed GIS components. A user-friendly web-portal was built that enables dynamic querying of the spatial databases to provide relevant information. Results The VBD-AIR tool constructed enables the user to explore the interrelationships among modeled global distributions of vector-borne infectious diseases (malaria. dengue, yellow fever and chikungunya) and international air service routes to quantify seasonally changing risks of vector and vector-borne disease importation and spread by air travel, forming an evidence base to help plan mitigation strategies. The VBD-AIR tool is available at http://www.vbd-air.com. Conclusions VBD-AIR supports a data flow that generates analytical results from disparate but complementary datasets into an organized cartographical presentation on a web map for the assessment of vector-borne disease movements on the air travel network

  5. Web-based GIS: the vector-borne disease airline importation risk (VBD-AIR) tool.

    PubMed

    Huang, Zhuojie; Das, Anirrudha; Qiu, Youliang; Tatem, Andrew J

    2012-08-14

    Over the past century, the size and complexity of the air travel network has increased dramatically. Nowadays, there are 29.6 million scheduled flights per year and around 2.7 billion passengers are transported annually. The rapid expansion of the network increasingly connects regions of endemic vector-borne disease with the rest of the world, resulting in challenges to health systems worldwide in terms of vector-borne pathogen importation and disease vector invasion events. Here we describe the development of a user-friendly Web-based GIS tool: the Vector-Borne Disease Airline Importation Risk Tool (VBD-AIR), to help better define the roles of airports and airlines in the transmission and spread of vector-borne diseases. Spatial datasets on modeled global disease and vector distributions, as well as climatic and air network traffic data were assembled. These were combined to derive relative risk metrics via air travel for imported infections, imported vectors and onward transmission, and incorporated into a three-tier server architecture in a Model-View-Controller framework with distributed GIS components. A user-friendly web-portal was built that enables dynamic querying of the spatial databases to provide relevant information. The VBD-AIR tool constructed enables the user to explore the interrelationships among modeled global distributions of vector-borne infectious diseases (malaria. dengue, yellow fever and chikungunya) and international air service routes to quantify seasonally changing risks of vector and vector-borne disease importation and spread by air travel, forming an evidence base to help plan mitigation strategies. The VBD-AIR tool is available at http://www.vbd-air.com. VBD-AIR supports a data flow that generates analytical results from disparate but complementary datasets into an organized cartographical presentation on a web map for the assessment of vector-borne disease movements on the air travel network. The framework built provides a flexible

  6. Program Management Tool

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Gawadiak, Yuri; Wong, Alan; Maluf, David; Bell, David; Gurram, Mohana; Tran, Khai Peter; Hsu, Jennifer; Yagi, Kenji; Patel, Hemil

    2007-01-01

    The Program Management Tool (PMT) is a comprehensive, Web-enabled business intelligence software tool for assisting program and project managers within NASA enterprises in gathering, comprehending, and disseminating information on the progress of their programs and projects. The PMT provides planning and management support for implementing NASA programmatic and project management processes and requirements. It provides an online environment for program and line management to develop, communicate, and manage their programs, projects, and tasks in a comprehensive tool suite. The information managed by use of the PMT can include monthly reports as well as data on goals, deliverables, milestones, business processes, personnel, task plans, monthly reports, and budgetary allocations. The PMT provides an intuitive and enhanced Web interface to automate the tedious process of gathering and sharing monthly progress reports, task plans, financial data, and other information on project resources based on technical, schedule, budget, and management criteria and merits. The PMT is consistent with the latest Web standards and software practices, including the use of Extensible Markup Language (XML) for exchanging data and the WebDAV (Web Distributed Authoring and Versioning) protocol for collaborative management of documents. The PMT provides graphical displays of resource allocations in the form of bar and pie charts using Microsoft Excel Visual Basic for Application (VBA) libraries. The PMT has an extensible architecture that enables integration of PMT with other strategic-information software systems, including, for example, the Erasmus reporting system, now part of the NASA Integrated Enterprise Management Program (IEMP) tool suite, at NASA Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC). The PMT data architecture provides automated and extensive software interfaces and reports to various strategic information systems to eliminate duplicative human entries and minimize data integrity

  7. Design and Testing of a Tool for Evaluating the Quality of Diabetes Consumer-Information Web Sites

    PubMed Central

    Steinwachs, Donald; Rubin, Haya R

    2003-01-01

    Background Most existing tools for measuring the quality of Internet health information focus almost exclusively on structural criteria or other proxies for quality information rather than evaluating actual accuracy and comprehensiveness. Objective This research sought to develop a new performance-measurement tool for evaluating the quality of Internet health information, test the validity and reliability of the tool, and assess the variability in diabetes Web site quality. Methods An objective, systematic tool was developed to evaluate Internet diabetes information based on a quality-of-care measurement framework. The principal investigator developed an abstraction tool and trained an external reviewer on its use. The tool included 7 structural measures and 34 performance measures created by using evidence-based practice guidelines and experts' judgments of accuracy and comprehensiveness. Results Substantial variation existed in all categories, with overall scores following a normal distribution and ranging from 15% to 95% (mean was 50% and median was 51%). Lin's concordance correlation coefficient to assess agreement between raters produced a rho of 0.761 (Pearson's r of 0.769), suggesting moderate to high agreement. The average agreement between raters for the performance measures was 0.80. Conclusions Diabetes Web site quality varies widely. Alpha testing of this new tool suggests that it could become a reliable and valid method for evaluating the quality of Internet health sites. Such an instrument could help lay people distinguish between beneficial and misleading information. PMID:14713658

  8. FLIRE DSS: A web tool for the management of floods and wildfires in urban and periurban areas

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kochilakis, Giorgos; Poursanidis, Dimitris; Chrysoulakis, Nektarios; Varella, Vassiliki; Kotroni, Vassiliki; Eftychidis, Giorgos; Lagouvardos, Kostas; Papathanasiou, Chrysoula; Karavokyros, George; Aivazoglou, Maria; Makropoulos, Christos; Mimikou, Maria

    2016-01-01

    A web-based Decision Support System, named FLIRE DSS, for combined forest fire control and planning as well as flood risk management, has been developed and is presented in this paper. State of the art tools and models have been used in order to enable Civil Protection agencies and local stakeholders to take advantage of the web based DSS without the need of local installation of complex software and their maintenance. Civil protection agencies can predict the behavior of a fire event using real time data and in such a way plan its efficient elimination. Also, during dry periods, agencies can implement "what-if" scenarios for areas that are prone to fire and thus have available plans for forest fire management in case such scenarios occur. Flood services include flood maps and flood-related warnings and become available to relevant authorities for visualization and further analysis on a daily basis. When flood warnings are issued, relevant authorities may proceed to efficient evacuation planning for the areas that are likely to flood and thus save human lives. Real-time weather data from ground stations provide the necessary inputs for the calculation of the fire model in real-time, and a high resolution weather forecast grid supports flood modeling as well as the development of "what-if" scenarios for the fire modeling. All these can be accessed by various computer sources including PC, laptop, Smartphone and tablet either by normal network connection or by using 3G and 4G cellular network. The latter is important for the accessibility of the FLIRE DSS during firefighting or rescue operations during flood events. All these methods and tools provide the end users with the necessary information to design an operational plan for the elimination of the fire events and the efficient management of the flood events in almost real time. Concluding, the FLIRE DSS can be easily transferred to other areas with similar characteristics due to its robust architecture and its

  9. Web-based CERES Clouds QC Property Viewing Tool

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Smith, R. A.

    2015-12-01

    Churngwei Chu1, Rita Smith1, Sunny Sun-Mack1, Yan Chen1, Elizabeth Heckert1, Patrick Minnis21 Science Systems and Applications, Inc., Hampton, Virginia2 NASA Langley Research Center, Hampton, Virginia This presentation will display the capabilities of a web-based CERES cloud property viewer. Aqua/Terra/NPP data will be chosen for examples. It will demonstrate viewing of cloud properties in gridded global maps, histograms, time series displays, latitudinal zonal images, binned data charts, data frequency graphs, and ISCCP plots. Images can be manipulated by the user to narrow boundaries of the map as well as color bars and value ranges, compare datasets, view data values, and more. Other atmospheric studies groups will be encouraged to put their data into the underlying NetCDF data format and view their data with the tool.

  10. A Web-based Google-Earth Coincident Imaging Tool for Satellite Calibration and Validation

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Killough, B. D.; Chander, G.; Gowda, S.

    2009-12-01

    The Group on Earth Observations (GEO) is coordinating international efforts to build a Global Earth Observation System of Systems (GEOSS) to meet the needs of its nine “Societal Benefit Areas”, of which the most demanding, in terms of accuracy, is climate. To accomplish this vision, satellite on-orbit and ground-based data calibration and validation (Cal/Val) of Earth observation measurements are critical to our scientific understanding of the Earth system. Existing tools supporting space mission Cal/Val are often developed for specific campaigns or events with little desire for broad application. This paper describes a web-based Google-Earth based tool for the calculation of coincident satellite observations with the intention to support a diverse international group of satellite missions to improve data continuity, interoperability and data fusion. The Committee on Earth Observing Satellites (CEOS), which includes 28 space agencies and 20 other national and international organizations, are currently operating and planning over 240 Earth observation satellites in the next 15 years. The technology described here will better enable the use of multiple sensors to promote increased coordination toward a GEOSS. The CEOS Systems Engineering Office (SEO) and the Working Group on Calibration and Validation (WGCV) support the development of the CEOS Visualization Environment (COVE) tool to enhance international coordination of data exchange, mission planning and Cal/Val events. The objective is to develop a simple and intuitive application tool that leverages the capabilities of Google-Earth web to display satellite sensor coverage areas and for the identification of coincident scene locations along with dynamic menus for flexibility and content display. Key features and capabilities include user-defined evaluation periods (start and end dates) and regions of interest (rectangular areas) and multi-user collaboration. Users can select two or more CEOS missions from a

  11. The Creative task Creator: a tool for the generation of customized, Web-based creativity tasks.

    PubMed

    Pretz, Jean E; Link, John A

    2008-11-01

    This article presents a Web-based tool for the creation of divergent-thinking and open-ended creativity tasks. A Java program generates HTML forms with PHP scripting that run an Alternate Uses Task and/or open-ended response items. Researchers may specify their own instructions, objects, and time limits, or use default settings. Participants can also be prompted to select their best responses to the Alternate Uses Task (Silvia et al., 2008). Minimal programming knowledge is required. The program runs on any server, and responses are recorded in a standard MySQL database. Responses can be scored using the consensual assessment technique (Amabile, 1996) or Torrance's (1998) traditional scoring method. Adoption of this Web-based tool should facilitate creativity research across cultures and access to eminent creators. The Creative Task Creator may be downloaded from the Psychonomic Society's Archive of Norms, Stimuli, and Data, www.psychonomic.org/archive.

  12. Web-based hydrodynamics computing

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Shimoide, Alan; Lin, Luping; Hong, Tracie-Lynne; Yoon, Ilmi; Aragon, Sergio R.

    2005-01-01

    Proteins are long chains of amino acids that have a definite 3-d conformation and the shape of each protein is vital to its function. Since proteins are normally in solution, hydrodynamics (describes the movement of solvent around a protein as a function of shape and size of the molecule) can be used to probe the size and shape of proteins compared to those derived from X-ray crystallography. The computation chain needed for these hydrodynamics calculations consists of several separate programs by different authors on various platforms and often requires 3D visualizations of intermediate results. Due to the complexity, tools developed by a particular research group are not readily available for use by other groups, nor even by the non-experts within the same research group. To alleviate this situation, and to foment the easy and wide distribution of computational tools worldwide, we developed a web based interactive computational environment (WICE) including interactive 3D visualization that can be used with any web browser. Java based technologies were used to provide a platform neutral, user-friendly solution. Java Server Pages (JSP), Java Servlets, Java Beans, JOGL (Java bindings for OpenGL), and Java Web Start were used to create a solution that simplifies the computing chain for the user allowing the user to focus on their scientific research. WICE hides complexity from the user and provides robust and sophisticated visualization through a web browser.

  13. Web-based hydrodynamics computing

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Shimoide, Alan; Lin, Luping; Hong, Tracie-Lynne; Yoon, Ilmi; Aragon, Sergio R.

    2004-12-01

    Proteins are long chains of amino acids that have a definite 3-d conformation and the shape of each protein is vital to its function. Since proteins are normally in solution, hydrodynamics (describes the movement of solvent around a protein as a function of shape and size of the molecule) can be used to probe the size and shape of proteins compared to those derived from X-ray crystallography. The computation chain needed for these hydrodynamics calculations consists of several separate programs by different authors on various platforms and often requires 3D visualizations of intermediate results. Due to the complexity, tools developed by a particular research group are not readily available for use by other groups, nor even by the non-experts within the same research group. To alleviate this situation, and to foment the easy and wide distribution of computational tools worldwide, we developed a web based interactive computational environment (WICE) including interactive 3D visualization that can be used with any web browser. Java based technologies were used to provide a platform neutral, user-friendly solution. Java Server Pages (JSP), Java Servlets, Java Beans, JOGL (Java bindings for OpenGL), and Java Web Start were used to create a solution that simplifies the computing chain for the user allowing the user to focus on their scientific research. WICE hides complexity from the user and provides robust and sophisticated visualization through a web browser.

  14. PC-based web authoring: How to learn as little unix as possible while getting on the Web

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

    Gennari, L.T.; Breaux, M.; Minton, S.

    1996-09-01

    This document is a general guide for creating Web pages, using commonly available word processing and file transfer applications. It is not a full guide to HTML, nor does it provide an introduction to the many WYSIWYG HTML editors available. The viability of the authoring method it describes will not be affected by changes in the HTML specification or the rapid release-and-obsolescence cycles of commercial WYSIWYG HTML editors. This document provides a gentle introduction to HTML for the beginner, and as the user gains confidence and experience, encourages greater familiarity with HTML through continued exposure to and hands-on usage ofmore » HTML code.« less

  15. Mac-based Web authoring: How to learn as little Unix as possible while getting on the Web.

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

    Gennari, L.T.

    1996-06-01

    This document is a general guide for creating Web pages, using commonly available word processing and file transfer applications. It is not a full guide to HTML, nor does it provide an introduction to the many WYSIWYG HTML editors available. The viability of the authoring method it describes will not be affected by changes in the HTML specification or the rapid release-and-obsolescence cycles of commercial WYSIWYG HTML editors. This document provides a gentle introduction to HTML for the beginner and as the user gains confidence and experience, encourages greater familiarity with HTML through continued exposure to and hands-on usage ofmore » HTML code.« less

  16. Web-Based Tools for Modelling and Analysis of Multivariate Data: California Ozone Pollution Activity

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Dinov, Ivo D.; Christou, Nicolas

    2011-01-01

    This article presents a hands-on web-based activity motivated by the relation between human health and ozone pollution in California. This case study is based on multivariate data collected monthly at 20 locations in California between 1980 and 2006. Several strategies and tools for data interrogation and exploratory data analysis, model fitting…

  17. Analysis of Java Client/Server and Web Programming Tools for Development of Educational Systems.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Muldner, Tomasz

    This paper provides an analysis of old and new programming tools for development of client/server programs, particularly World Wide Web-based programs. The focus is on development of educational systems that use interactive shared workspaces to provide portable and expandable solutions. The paper begins with a short description of relevant terms.…

  18. Evaluation of a Web Conferencing Tool and Collaborative Tasks in an Online Chinese Course

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Guo, Sijia

    2014-01-01

    This case study aims to explore the best practice of applying task-based language teaching (TBLT) via the web conferencing tool Blackboard Collaborate in a beginners' online Chinese course by evaluating the technical capacity of the software and the pedagogical values and limitations of the tasks designed. In this paper, Chapelle's (2001) criteria…

  19. Web-Based Geospatial Tools to Address Hazard Mitigation, Natural Resource Management, and Other Societal Issues

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Hearn,, Paul P.

    2009-01-01

    Federal, State, and local government agencies in the United States face a broad range of issues on a daily basis. Among these are natural hazard mitigation, homeland security, emergency response, economic and community development, water supply, and health and safety services. The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) helps decision makers address these issues by providing natural hazard assessments, information on energy, mineral, water and biological resources, maps, and other geospatial information. Increasingly, decision makers at all levels are challenged not by the lack of information, but by the absence of effective tools to synthesize the large volume of data available, and to utilize the data to frame policy options in a straightforward and understandable manner. While geographic information system (GIS) technology has been widely applied to this end, systems with the necessary analytical power have been usable only by trained operators. The USGS is addressing the need for more accessible, manageable data tools by developing a suite of Web-based geospatial applications that will incorporate USGS and cooperating partner data into the decision making process for a variety of critical issues. Examples of Web-based geospatial tools being used to address societal issues follow.

  20. Students as Web Site Authors: Effects on Motivation and Achievement

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Jones, Brett D.

    2003-01-01

    This study examined the effects of a Web site design project on students' motivation and achievement. Tenth-grade biology students worked together in teams on an ecology project that required them to locate relevant information on the Internet, decide which information should be included on their Web site, organize the information into Web pages,…

  1. Two Screens and an Ocean: Collaborating across Continents and Cultures with Web-Based Tools

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Frydenberg, Mark; Andone, Diana

    2010-01-01

    This paper describes the implementation and results of a cross-cultural pairing between college students in the United States and Romania who worked together over the period of one month to create a multimedia presentation that shared their learning about topics of multimedia and culture. Students could use any web-based collaboration tools of…

  2. REopt Lite Web Tool

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

    NREL developed a free, publicly available web version of the REopt (TM) renewable energy integration and optimization platform called REopt Lite. REopt Lite recommends the optimal size and dispatch strategy for grid-connected photovoltaics (PV) and battery storage at a site. It also allows users to explore how PV and storage can increase a site's resiliency during a grid outage.

  3. Concept maps: A tool for knowledge management and synthesis in web-based conversational learning.

    PubMed

    Joshi, Ankur; Singh, Satendra; Jaswal, Shivani; Badyal, Dinesh Kumar; Singh, Tejinder

    2016-01-01

    Web-based conversational learning provides an opportunity for shared knowledge base creation through collaboration and collective wisdom extraction. Usually, the amount of generated information in such forums is very huge, multidimensional (in alignment with the desirable preconditions for constructivist knowledge creation), and sometimes, the nature of expected new information may not be anticipated in advance. Thus, concept maps (crafted from constructed data) as "process summary" tools may be a solution to improve critical thinking and learning by making connections between the facts or knowledge shared by the participants during online discussion This exploratory paper begins with the description of this innovation tried on a web-based interacting platform (email list management software), FAIMER-Listserv, and generated qualitative evidence through peer-feedback. This process description is further supported by a theoretical construct which shows how social constructivism (inclusive of autonomy and complexity) affects the conversational learning. The paper rationalizes the use of concept map as mid-summary tool for extracting information and further sense making out of this apparent intricacy.

  4. Web-based live telesurgery for minimally invasive procedures in children as an educational tool.

    PubMed

    Rothenberg, Steven; Holcomb, George; Georgeson, Keith; Irish, Mike; Lucas, Eugene; Blinman, Thane

    2007-04-01

    Three surgeries--a laparoscopic Nissen fundoplication, a thoracoscopic left lower lobectomy, and a laparoscopically assisted pull-through for imperforate anus--were broadcast live over the internet. Pediatric surgeons and appropriate societies were notified of the broadcasts by e-mail. Viewers registered on-line at no cost. The procedures could be viewed from any computer connected to the internet. There was a surgeon and on-site moderator for each procedure and viewers could ask questions in real time via e-mail. The three surgeries were archived on the web for later viewing. The broadcasts were transmitted without problem. There were over 8500 preliminary hits at the web site, from 49 countries. By report, many sites had multiple viewers. As of April 2006 there have been over 19,000 hits and 5600 viewers have registered to watch the archived video. Web-based broadcasts appear to be an efficient way for sharing surgical experience and may be a way to expand surgeon education in select cases, especially in an era of dispersal of index cases, work hour restrictions, and evolving technologies. A network of pediatric programs linked via the web might provide an important educational tool.

  5. Using Web 2.0 tools to connect shore-based users to live science from the wide blue ocean

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Cooper, S. K.; Peart, L.; Collins, J.

    2009-12-01

    The fast-expanding use of social networking tools, combined with improved connectivity available through satellite-provided internet on board the scientific ocean drilling vessel JOIDES Resolution (the JR), has allowed for a whole new kind of interaction. Unlike in the not-so-distant past, when non-participants were forced to wait for months to read about the results of ongoing research, web tools allow almost instantaneous participation in ship-based ocean science. Utilizing a brand new portal, joidesresolution.org, scientists and educators at sea can post daily blogs about their work and respond to questions and comments on those blogs, update the JR’s Facebook and Twitter pages, and post videos and photos to YouTube and Flickr regularly. Live video conferencing tools also allow for direct interaction with scientists and a view into the work being done on board in real time. These tools have allowed students, teachers and families, groups and individuals on shore to follow along with the expeditions of the ship and its exciting scientific explorations -- and become a part of them. Building this community provides a whole range of rich interactions and brings seafloor research and the real process of science to those who would never before have had access to it. This presentation will include an overview of the web portal and its associated social networking sites, as well as a discussion of the challenges and lessons learned over nearly a year of utilizing these new tools. The web portal joidesresolution.org home page.

  6. A web-based data visualization tool for the MIMIC-II database.

    PubMed

    Lee, Joon; Ribey, Evan; Wallace, James R

    2016-02-04

    Although MIMIC-II, a public intensive care database, has been recognized as an invaluable resource for many medical researchers worldwide, becoming a proficient MIMIC-II researcher requires knowledge of SQL programming and an understanding of the MIMIC-II database schema. These are challenging requirements especially for health researchers and clinicians who may have limited computer proficiency. In order to overcome this challenge, our objective was to create an interactive, web-based MIMIC-II data visualization tool that first-time MIMIC-II users can easily use to explore the database. The tool offers two main features: Explore and Compare. The Explore feature enables the user to select a patient cohort within MIMIC-II and visualize the distributions of various administrative, demographic, and clinical variables within the selected cohort. The Compare feature enables the user to select two patient cohorts and visually compare them with respect to a variety of variables. The tool is also helpful to experienced MIMIC-II researchers who can use it to substantially accelerate the cumbersome and time-consuming steps of writing SQL queries and manually visualizing extracted data. Any interested researcher can use the MIMIC-II data visualization tool for free to quickly and conveniently conduct a preliminary investigation on MIMIC-II with a few mouse clicks. Researchers can also use the tool to learn the characteristics of the MIMIC-II patients. Since it is still impossible to conduct multivariable regression inside the tool, future work includes adding analytics capabilities. Also, the next version of the tool will aim to utilize MIMIC-III which contains more data.

  7. Mining Student Data Captured from a Web-Based Tutoring Tool: Initial Exploration and Results

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Merceron, Agathe; Yacef, Kalina

    2004-01-01

    In this article we describe the initial investigations that we have conducted on student data collected from a web-based tutoring tool. We have used some data mining techniques such as association rule and symbolic data analysis, as well as traditional SQL queries to gain further insight on the students' learning and deduce information to improve…

  8. CerebralWeb: a Cytoscape.js plug-in to visualize networks stratified by subcellular localization.

    PubMed

    Frias, Silvia; Bryan, Kenneth; Brinkman, Fiona S L; Lynn, David J

    2015-01-01

    CerebralWeb is a light-weight JavaScript plug-in that extends Cytoscape.js to enable fast and interactive visualization of molecular interaction networks stratified based on subcellular localization or other user-supplied annotation. The application is designed to be easily integrated into any website and is configurable to support customized network visualization. CerebralWeb also supports the automatic retrieval of Cerebral-compatible localizations for human, mouse and bovine genes via a web service and enables the automated parsing of Cytoscape compatible XGMML network files. CerebralWeb currently supports embedded network visualization on the InnateDB (www.innatedb.com) and Allergy and Asthma Portal (allergen.innatedb.com) database and analysis resources. Database tool URL: http://www.innatedb.com/CerebralWeb © The Author(s) 2015. Published by Oxford University Press.

  9. Researchermap: a tool for visualizing author locations using Google maps.

    PubMed

    Rastegar-Mojarad, Majid; Bales, Michael E; Yu, Hong

    2013-01-01

    We hereby present ResearcherMap, a tool to visualize locations of authors of scholarly papers. In response to a query, the system returns a map of author locations. To develop the system we first populated a database of author locations, geocoding institution locations for all available institutional affiliation data in our database. The database includes all authors of Medline papers from 1990 to 2012. We conducted a formative heuristic usability evaluation of the system and measured the system's accuracy and performance. The accuracy of finding the accurate address is 97.5% in our system.

  10. Rtools: a web server for various secondary structural analyses on single RNA sequences.

    PubMed

    Hamada, Michiaki; Ono, Yukiteru; Kiryu, Hisanori; Sato, Kengo; Kato, Yuki; Fukunaga, Tsukasa; Mori, Ryota; Asai, Kiyoshi

    2016-07-08

    The secondary structures, as well as the nucleotide sequences, are the important features of RNA molecules to characterize their functions. According to the thermodynamic model, however, the probability of any secondary structure is very small. As a consequence, any tool to predict the secondary structures of RNAs has limited accuracy. On the other hand, there are a few tools to compensate the imperfect predictions by calculating and visualizing the secondary structural information from RNA sequences. It is desirable to obtain the rich information from those tools through a friendly interface. We implemented a web server of the tools to predict secondary structures and to calculate various structural features based on the energy models of secondary structures. By just giving an RNA sequence to the web server, the user can get the different types of solutions of the secondary structures, the marginal probabilities such as base-paring probabilities, loop probabilities and accessibilities of the local bases, the energy changes by arbitrary base mutations as well as the measures for validations of the predicted secondary structures. The web server is available at http://rtools.cbrc.jp, which integrates software tools, CentroidFold, CentroidHomfold, IPKnot, CapR, Raccess, Rchange and RintD. © The Author(s) 2016. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Nucleic Acids Research.

  11. Web-Based Geographic Information System Tool for Accessing Hanford Site Environmental Data

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

    Triplett, Mark B.; Seiple, Timothy E.; Watson, David J.

    Data volume, complexity, and access issues pose severe challenges for analysts, regulators and stakeholders attempting to efficiently use legacy data to support decision making at the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Hanford Site. DOE has partnered with the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) on the PHOENIX (PNNL-Hanford Online Environmental Information System) project, which seeks to address data access, transparency, and integration challenges at Hanford to provide effective decision support. PHOENIX is a family of spatially-enabled web applications providing quick access to decades of valuable scientific data and insight through intuitive query, visualization, and analysis tools. PHOENIX realizes broad, public accessibilitymore » by relying only on ubiquitous web-browsers, eliminating the need for specialized software. It accommodates a wide range of users with intuitive user interfaces that require little or no training to quickly obtain and visualize data. Currently, PHOENIX is actively hosting three applications focused on groundwater monitoring, groundwater clean-up performance reporting, and in-tank monitoring. PHOENIX-based applications are being used to streamline investigative and analytical processes at Hanford, saving time and money. But more importantly, by integrating previously isolated datasets and developing relevant visualization and analysis tools, PHOENIX applications are enabling DOE to discover new correlations hidden in legacy data, allowing them to more effectively address complex issues at Hanford.« less

  12. Developing the E-Delphi System: A Web-Based Forecasting Tool for Educational Research.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Chou, Chien

    2002-01-01

    Discusses use of the Delphi technique and describes the development of an electronic version, called e-Delphi, in which questionnaire construction and communication with panel members was accomplished using the Web. Explains system function and interface and discusses evaluation of the e-Delphi system. (Author/LRW)

  13. Social Software and Academic Practice: Postgraduate Students as Co-Designers of Web 2.0 Tools

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Carmichael, Patrick; Burchmore, Helen

    2010-01-01

    In order to develop potentially transformative Web 2.0 tools in higher education, the complexity of existing academic practices, including current patterns of technology use, must be recognised. This paper describes how a series of participatory design activities allowed postgraduate students in education, social sciences and computer sciences to…

  14. Procedure-Authoring Tool Improves Safety on Oil Rigs

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    2014-01-01

    Dark, cold, and dangerous environments are plentiful in space and on Earth. To ensure safe operations in difficult surroundings, NASA relies heavily on procedures written well ahead of time. Houston-based TRACLabs Inc. worked with Ames Research Center through the SBIR program to create an electronic procedure authoring tool, now used by NASA and companies in the oil and gas industry.

  15. Hospital-based nurses' perceptions of the adoption of Web 2.0 tools for knowledge sharing, learning, social interaction and the production of collective intelligence.

    PubMed

    Lau, Adela S M

    2011-11-11

    Web 2.0 provides a platform or a set of tools such as blogs, wikis, really simple syndication (RSS), podcasts, tags, social bookmarks, and social networking software for knowledge sharing, learning, social interaction, and the production of collective intelligence in a virtual environment. Web 2.0 is also becoming increasingly popular in e-learning and e-social communities. The objectives were to investigate how Web 2.0 tools can be applied for knowledge sharing, learning, social interaction, and the production of collective intelligence in the nursing domain and to investigate what behavioral perceptions are involved in the adoption of Web 2.0 tools by nurses. The decomposed technology acceptance model was applied to construct the research model on which the hypotheses were based. A questionnaire was developed based on the model and data from nurses (n = 388) were collected from late January 2009 until April 30, 2009. Pearson's correlation analysis and t tests were used for data analysis. Intention toward using Web 2.0 tools was positively correlated with usage behavior (r = .60, P < .05). Behavioral intention was positively correlated with attitude (r = .72, P < .05), perceived behavioral control (r = .58, P < .05), and subjective norm (r = .45, P < .05). In their decomposed constructs, perceived usefulness (r = .7, P < .05), relative advantage (r = .64, P < .05), and compatibility (r = .60,P < .05) were positively correlated with attitude, but perceived ease of use was not significantly correlated (r = .004, P < .05) with it. Peer (r = .47, P < .05), senior management (r = .24,P < .05), and hospital (r = .45, P < .05) influences had positive correlations with subjective norm. Resource (r = .41,P < .05) and technological (r = .69,P < .05) conditions were positively correlated with perceived behavioral control. The identified behavioral perceptions may further health policy makers' understanding of nurses' concerns regarding and barriers to the adoption of Web 2

  16. RSAT 2015: Regulatory Sequence Analysis Tools.

    PubMed

    Medina-Rivera, Alejandra; Defrance, Matthieu; Sand, Olivier; Herrmann, Carl; Castro-Mondragon, Jaime A; Delerce, Jeremy; Jaeger, Sébastien; Blanchet, Christophe; Vincens, Pierre; Caron, Christophe; Staines, Daniel M; Contreras-Moreira, Bruno; Artufel, Marie; Charbonnier-Khamvongsa, Lucie; Hernandez, Céline; Thieffry, Denis; Thomas-Chollier, Morgane; van Helden, Jacques

    2015-07-01

    RSAT (Regulatory Sequence Analysis Tools) is a modular software suite for the analysis of cis-regulatory elements in genome sequences. Its main applications are (i) motif discovery, appropriate to genome-wide data sets like ChIP-seq, (ii) transcription factor binding motif analysis (quality assessment, comparisons and clustering), (iii) comparative genomics and (iv) analysis of regulatory variations. Nine new programs have been added to the 43 described in the 2011 NAR Web Software Issue, including a tool to extract sequences from a list of coordinates (fetch-sequences from UCSC), novel programs dedicated to the analysis of regulatory variants from GWAS or population genomics (retrieve-variation-seq and variation-scan), a program to cluster motifs and visualize the similarities as trees (matrix-clustering). To deal with the drastic increase of sequenced genomes, RSAT public sites have been reorganized into taxon-specific servers. The suite is well-documented with tutorials and published protocols. The software suite is available through Web sites, SOAP/WSDL Web services, virtual machines and stand-alone programs at http://www.rsat.eu/. © The Author(s) 2015. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Nucleic Acids Research.

  17. I've Gathered a Basket of Communication and Collaboration Tools

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Chang, May

    2004-01-01

    In this article, the author, a Web development librarian at North Carolina State University (NCSU) Libraries, recounts how she initiated the implementation of a series of open source communication and collaboration applications for the Libraries' Web site and intranet, and how she gathered a number of tried and tested C&C tools that can…

  18. PCTFPeval: a web tool for benchmarking newly developed algorithms for predicting cooperative transcription factor pairs in yeast.

    PubMed

    Lai, Fu-Jou; Chang, Hong-Tsun; Wu, Wei-Sheng

    2015-01-01

    Computational identification of cooperative transcription factor (TF) pairs helps understand the combinatorial regulation of gene expression in eukaryotic cells. Many advanced algorithms have been proposed to predict cooperative TF pairs in yeast. However, it is still difficult to conduct a comprehensive and objective performance comparison of different algorithms because of lacking sufficient performance indices and adequate overall performance scores. To solve this problem, in our previous study (published in BMC Systems Biology 2014), we adopted/proposed eight performance indices and designed two overall performance scores to compare the performance of 14 existing algorithms for predicting cooperative TF pairs in yeast. Most importantly, our performance comparison framework can be applied to comprehensively and objectively evaluate the performance of a newly developed algorithm. However, to use our framework, researchers have to put a lot of effort to construct it first. To save researchers time and effort, here we develop a web tool to implement our performance comparison framework, featuring fast data processing, a comprehensive performance comparison and an easy-to-use web interface. The developed tool is called PCTFPeval (Predicted Cooperative TF Pair evaluator), written in PHP and Python programming languages. The friendly web interface allows users to input a list of predicted cooperative TF pairs from their algorithm and select (i) the compared algorithms among the 15 existing algorithms, (ii) the performance indices among the eight existing indices, and (iii) the overall performance scores from two possible choices. The comprehensive performance comparison results are then generated in tens of seconds and shown as both bar charts and tables. The original comparison results of each compared algorithm and each selected performance index can be downloaded as text files for further analyses. Allowing users to select eight existing performance indices and 15

  19. PCTFPeval: a web tool for benchmarking newly developed algorithms for predicting cooperative transcription factor pairs in yeast

    PubMed Central

    2015-01-01

    Background Computational identification of cooperative transcription factor (TF) pairs helps understand the combinatorial regulation of gene expression in eukaryotic cells. Many advanced algorithms have been proposed to predict cooperative TF pairs in yeast. However, it is still difficult to conduct a comprehensive and objective performance comparison of different algorithms because of lacking sufficient performance indices and adequate overall performance scores. To solve this problem, in our previous study (published in BMC Systems Biology 2014), we adopted/proposed eight performance indices and designed two overall performance scores to compare the performance of 14 existing algorithms for predicting cooperative TF pairs in yeast. Most importantly, our performance comparison framework can be applied to comprehensively and objectively evaluate the performance of a newly developed algorithm. However, to use our framework, researchers have to put a lot of effort to construct it first. To save researchers time and effort, here we develop a web tool to implement our performance comparison framework, featuring fast data processing, a comprehensive performance comparison and an easy-to-use web interface. Results The developed tool is called PCTFPeval (Predicted Cooperative TF Pair evaluator), written in PHP and Python programming languages. The friendly web interface allows users to input a list of predicted cooperative TF pairs from their algorithm and select (i) the compared algorithms among the 15 existing algorithms, (ii) the performance indices among the eight existing indices, and (iii) the overall performance scores from two possible choices. The comprehensive performance comparison results are then generated in tens of seconds and shown as both bar charts and tables. The original comparison results of each compared algorithm and each selected performance index can be downloaded as text files for further analyses. Conclusions Allowing users to select eight

  20. Lynx web services for annotations and systems analysis of multi-gene disorders.

    PubMed

    Sulakhe, Dinanath; Taylor, Andrew; Balasubramanian, Sandhya; Feng, Bo; Xie, Bingqing; Börnigen, Daniela; Dave, Utpal J; Foster, Ian T; Gilliam, T Conrad; Maltsev, Natalia

    2014-07-01

    Lynx is a web-based integrated systems biology platform that supports annotation and analysis of experimental data and generation of weighted hypotheses on molecular mechanisms contributing to human phenotypes and disorders of interest. Lynx has integrated multiple classes of biomedical data (genomic, proteomic, pathways, phenotypic, toxicogenomic, contextual and others) from various public databases as well as manually curated data from our group and collaborators (LynxKB). Lynx provides tools for gene list enrichment analysis using multiple functional annotations and network-based gene prioritization. Lynx provides access to the integrated database and the analytical tools via REST based Web Services (http://lynx.ci.uchicago.edu/webservices.html). This comprises data retrieval services for specific functional annotations, services to search across the complete LynxKB (powered by Lucene), and services to access the analytical tools built within the Lynx platform. © The Author(s) 2014. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Nucleic Acids Research.

  1. A web GIS based integrated flood assessment modeling tool for coastal urban watersheds

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kulkarni, A. T.; Mohanty, J.; Eldho, T. I.; Rao, E. P.; Mohan, B. K.

    2014-03-01

    Urban flooding has become an increasingly important issue in many parts of the world. In this study, an integrated flood assessment model (IFAM) is presented for the coastal urban flood simulation. A web based GIS framework has been adopted to organize the spatial datasets for the study area considered and to run the model within this framework. The integrated flood model consists of a mass balance based 1-D overland flow model, 1-D finite element based channel flow model based on diffusion wave approximation and a quasi 2-D raster flood inundation model based on the continuity equation. The model code is written in MATLAB and the application is integrated within a web GIS server product viz: Web Gram Server™ (WGS), developed at IIT Bombay, using Java, JSP and JQuery technologies. Its user interface is developed using open layers and the attribute data are stored in MySQL open source DBMS. The model is integrated within WGS and is called via Java script. The application has been demonstrated for two coastal urban watersheds of Navi Mumbai, India. Simulated flood extents for extreme rainfall event of 26 July, 2005 in the two urban watersheds of Navi Mumbai city are presented and discussed. The study demonstrates the effectiveness of the flood simulation tool in a web GIS environment to facilitate data access and visualization of GIS datasets and simulation results.

  2. Capturing citation activity in three health sciences departments: a comparison study of Scopus and Web of Science.

    PubMed

    Sarkozy, Alexandra; Slyman, Alison; Wu, Wendy

    2015-01-01

    Scopus and Web of Science are the two major citation databases that collect and disseminate bibliometric statistics about research articles, journals, institutions, and individual authors. Liaison librarians are now regularly called upon to utilize these databases to assist faculty in finding citation activity on their published works for tenure and promotion, grant applications, and more. But questions about the accuracy, scope, and coverage of these tools deserve closer scrutiny. Discrepancies in citation capture led to a systematic study on how Scopus and Web of Science compared in a real-life situation encountered by liaisons: comparing three different disciplines at a medical school and nursing program. How many articles would each database retrieve for each faculty member using the author-searching tools provided? How many cited references for each faculty member would each tool generate? Results demonstrated troubling differences in publication and citation activity capture between Scopus and Web of Science. Implications for librarians are discussed.

  3. Teaching Web Security Using Portable Virtual Labs

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Chen, Li-Chiou; Tao, Lixin

    2012-01-01

    We have developed a tool called Secure WEb dEvelopment Teaching (SWEET) to introduce security concepts and practices for web application development. This tool provides introductory tutorials, teaching modules utilizing virtualized hands-on exercises, and project ideas in web application security. In addition, the tool provides pre-configured…

  4. Use of Web-Based Portfolios as Tools for Reflection in Preservice Teacher Education

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Oner, Diler; Adadan, Emine

    2011-01-01

    This mixed-methods study examined the use of web-based portfolios for developing preservice teachers' reflective skills. Building on the work of previous research, the authors proposed a set of reflection-based tasks to enrich preservice teachers' internship experiences. Their purpose was to identify (a) whether preservice teachers demonstrated…

  5. Factors Influencing the Use of Cognitive Tools in Web-Based Learning Environments: A Case Study

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Ozcelik, Erol; Yildirim, Soner

    2005-01-01

    High demands on learners in Web-based learning environments and constraints of the human cognitive system cause disorientation and cognitive overload. These problems could be inhibited if appropriate cognitive tools are provided to support learners' cognitive processes. The purpose of this study was to explore the factors influencing the use of…

  6. Web-Based Course Management and Web Services

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Mandal, Chittaranjan; Sinha, Vijay Luxmi; Reade, Christopher M. P.

    2004-01-01

    The architecture of a web-based course management tool that has been developed at IIT [Indian Institute of Technology], Kharagpur and which manages the submission of assignments is discussed. Both the distributed architecture used for data storage and the client-server architecture supporting the web interface are described. Further developments…

  7. A Web Tool for Research in Nonlinear Optics

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Prikhod'ko, Nikolay V.; Abramovsky, Viktor A.; Abramovskaya, Natalia V.; Demichev, Andrey P.; Kryukov, Alexandr P.; Polyakov, Stanislav P.

    2016-02-01

    This paper presents a project of developing the web platform called WebNLO for computer modeling of nonlinear optics phenomena. We discuss a general scheme of the platform and a model for interaction between the platform modules. The platform is built as a set of interacting RESTful web services (SaaS approach). Users can interact with the platform through a web browser or command line interface. Such a resource has no analogues in the field of nonlinear optics and will be created for the first time therefore allowing researchers to access high-performance computing resources that will significantly reduce the cost of the research and development process.

  8. The Role of the Web Server in a Capstone Web Application Course

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Umapathy, Karthikeyan; Wallace, F. Layne

    2010-01-01

    Web applications have become commonplace in the Information Systems curriculum. Much of the discussion about Web development for capstone courses has centered on the scripting tools. Very little has been discussed about different ways to incorporate the Web server into Web application development courses. In this paper, three different ways of…

  9. ProBiS tools (algorithm, database, and web servers) for predicting and modeling of biologically interesting proteins.

    PubMed

    Konc, Janez; Janežič, Dušanka

    2017-09-01

    ProBiS (Protein Binding Sites) Tools consist of algorithm, database, and web servers for prediction of binding sites and protein ligands based on the detection of structurally similar binding sites in the Protein Data Bank. In this article, we review the operations that ProBiS Tools perform, provide comments on the evolution of the tools, and give some implementation details. We review some of its applications to biologically interesting proteins. ProBiS Tools are freely available at http://probis.cmm.ki.si and http://probis.nih.gov. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  10. PhosphOrtholog: a web-based tool for cross-species mapping of orthologous protein post-translational modifications.

    PubMed

    Chaudhuri, Rima; Sadrieh, Arash; Hoffman, Nolan J; Parker, Benjamin L; Humphrey, Sean J; Stöckli, Jacqueline; Hill, Adam P; James, David E; Yang, Jean Yee Hwa

    2015-08-19

    Most biological processes are influenced by protein post-translational modifications (PTMs). Identifying novel PTM sites in different organisms, including humans and model organisms, has expedited our understanding of key signal transduction mechanisms. However, with increasing availability of deep, quantitative datasets in diverse species, there is a growing need for tools to facilitate cross-species comparison of PTM data. This is particularly important because functionally important modification sites are more likely to be evolutionarily conserved; yet cross-species comparison of PTMs is difficult since they often lie in structurally disordered protein domains. Current tools that address this can only map known PTMs between species based on known orthologous phosphosites, and do not enable the cross-species mapping of newly identified modification sites. Here, we addressed this by developing a web-based software tool, PhosphOrtholog ( www.phosphortholog.com ) that accurately maps protein modification sites between different species. This facilitates the comparison of datasets derived from multiple species, and should be a valuable tool for the proteomics community. Here we describe PhosphOrtholog, a web-based application for mapping known and novel orthologous PTM sites from experimental data obtained from different species. PhosphOrtholog is the only generic and automated tool that enables cross-species comparison of large-scale PTM datasets without relying on existing PTM databases. This is achieved through pairwise sequence alignment of orthologous protein residues. To demonstrate its utility we apply it to two sets of human and rat muscle phosphoproteomes generated following insulin and exercise stimulation, respectively, and one publicly available mouse phosphoproteome following cellular stress revealing high mapping and coverage efficiency. Although coverage statistics are dataset dependent, PhosphOrtholog increased the number of cross-species mapped sites

  11. FRAT-up, a Web-based fall-risk assessment tool for elderly people living in the community.

    PubMed

    Cattelani, Luca; Palumbo, Pierpaolo; Palmerini, Luca; Bandinelli, Stefania; Becker, Clemens; Chesani, Federico; Chiari, Lorenzo

    2015-02-18

    About 30% of people over 65 are subject to at least one unintentional fall a year. Fall prevention protocols and interventions can decrease the number of falls. To be effective, a prevention strategy requires a prior step to evaluate the fall risk of the subjects. Despite extensive research, existing assessment tools for fall risk have been insufficient for predicting falls. The goal of this study is to present a novel web-based fall-risk assessment tool (FRAT-up) and to evaluate its accuracy in predicting falls, within a context of community-dwelling persons aged 65 and up. FRAT-up is based on the assumption that a subject's fall risk is given by the contribution of their exposure to each of the known fall-risk factors. Many scientific studies have investigated the relationship between falls and risk factors. The majority of these studies adopted statistical approaches, usually providing quantitative information such as odds ratios. FRAT-up exploits these numerical results to compute how each single factor contributes to the overall fall risk. FRAT-up is based on a formal ontology that enlists a number of known risk factors, together with quantitative findings in terms of odds ratios. From such information, an automatic algorithm generates a rule-based probabilistic logic program, that is, a set of rules for each risk factor. The rule-based program takes the health profile of the subject (in terms of exposure to the risk factors) and computes the fall risk. A Web-based interface allows users to input health profiles and to visualize the risk assessment for the given subject. FRAT-up has been evaluated on the InCHIANTI Study dataset, a representative population-based study of older persons living in the Chianti area (Tuscany, Italy). We compared reported falls with predicted ones and computed performance indicators. The obtained area under curve of the receiver operating characteristic was 0.642 (95% CI 0.614-0.669), while the Brier score was 0.174. The Hosmer

  12. FRAT-up, a Web-based Fall-Risk Assessment Tool for Elderly People Living in the Community

    PubMed Central

    Cattelani, Luca; Palumbo, Pierpaolo; Palmerini, Luca; Bandinelli, Stefania; Becker, Clemens; Chiari, Lorenzo

    2015-01-01

    Background About 30% of people over 65 are subject to at least one unintentional fall a year. Fall prevention protocols and interventions can decrease the number of falls. To be effective, a prevention strategy requires a prior step to evaluate the fall risk of the subjects. Despite extensive research, existing assessment tools for fall risk have been insufficient for predicting falls. Objective The goal of this study is to present a novel web-based fall-risk assessment tool (FRAT-up) and to evaluate its accuracy in predicting falls, within a context of community-dwelling persons aged 65 and up. Methods FRAT-up is based on the assumption that a subject’s fall risk is given by the contribution of their exposure to each of the known fall-risk factors. Many scientific studies have investigated the relationship between falls and risk factors. The majority of these studies adopted statistical approaches, usually providing quantitative information such as odds ratios. FRAT-up exploits these numerical results to compute how each single factor contributes to the overall fall risk. FRAT-up is based on a formal ontology that enlists a number of known risk factors, together with quantitative findings in terms of odds ratios. From such information, an automatic algorithm generates a rule-based probabilistic logic program, that is, a set of rules for each risk factor. The rule-based program takes the health profile of the subject (in terms of exposure to the risk factors) and computes the fall risk. A Web-based interface allows users to input health profiles and to visualize the risk assessment for the given subject. FRAT-up has been evaluated on the InCHIANTI Study dataset, a representative population-based study of older persons living in the Chianti area (Tuscany, Italy). We compared reported falls with predicted ones and computed performance indicators. Results The obtained area under curve of the receiver operating characteristic was 0.642 (95% CI 0.614-0.669), while the

  13. InteGO2: a web tool for measuring and visualizing gene semantic similarities using Gene Ontology.

    PubMed

    Peng, Jiajie; Li, Hongxiang; Liu, Yongzhuang; Juan, Liran; Jiang, Qinghua; Wang, Yadong; Chen, Jin

    2016-08-31

    The Gene Ontology (GO) has been used in high-throughput omics research as a major bioinformatics resource. The hierarchical structure of GO provides users a convenient platform for biological information abstraction and hypothesis testing. Computational methods have been developed to identify functionally similar genes. However, none of the existing measurements take into account all the rich information in GO. Similarly, using these existing methods, web-based applications have been constructed to compute gene functional similarities, and to provide pure text-based outputs. Without a graphical visualization interface, it is difficult for result interpretation. We present InteGO2, a web tool that allows researchers to calculate the GO-based gene semantic similarities using seven widely used GO-based similarity measurements. Also, we provide an integrative measurement that synergistically integrates all the individual measurements to improve the overall performance. Using HTML5 and cytoscape.js, we provide a graphical interface in InteGO2 to visualize the resulting gene functional association networks. InteGO2 is an easy-to-use HTML5 based web tool. With it, researchers can measure gene or gene product functional similarity conveniently, and visualize the network of functional interactions in a graphical interface. InteGO2 can be accessed via http://mlg.hit.edu.cn:8089/ .

  14. An Authoring Tool for User Generated Mobile Services

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Danado, José; Davies, Marcin; Ricca, Paulo; Fensel, Anna

    Imagine what kind of applications become possible when our mobile devices not only present data but provide valuable information to other users. Users become able to instantaneously create services and to publish content and knowledge on their own mobile device, which can be discovered and accessed remotely by other mobile users in a simple way. To achieve the vision of customizable and context aware user-generated mobile services, we present a mobile authoring tool for end-users to create, customize and deploy mobile services while on-the-go. This tool is designed to allow users with different levels of technical expertise to create mobile services. The paper also gives insight on the performed usability evaluations, namely user interviews and an online survey.

  15. A web-based genomic sequence database for the Streptomycetaceae: a tool for systematics and genome mining

    USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

    The ARS Microbial Genome Sequence Database (http://199.133.98.43), a web-based database server, was established utilizing the BIGSdb (Bacterial Isolate Genomics Sequence Database) software package, developed at Oxford University, as a tool to manage multi-locus sequence data for the family Streptomy...

  16. MRMaid, the web-based tool for designing multiple reaction monitoring (MRM) transitions.

    PubMed

    Mead, Jennifer A; Bianco, Luca; Ottone, Vanessa; Barton, Chris; Kay, Richard G; Lilley, Kathryn S; Bond, Nicholas J; Bessant, Conrad

    2009-04-01

    Multiple reaction monitoring (MRM) of peptides uses tandem mass spectrometry to quantify selected proteins of interest, such as those previously identified in differential studies. Using this technique, the specificity of precursor to product transitions is harnessed for quantitative analysis of multiple proteins in a single sample. The design of transitions is critical for the success of MRM experiments, but predicting signal intensity of peptides and fragmentation patterns ab initio is challenging given existing methods. The tool presented here, MRMaid (pronounced "mermaid") offers a novel alternative for rapid design of MRM transitions for the proteomics researcher. The program uses a combination of knowledge of the properties of optimal MRM transitions taken from expert practitioners and literature with MS/MS evidence derived from interrogation of a database of peptide identifications and their associated mass spectra. The tool also predicts retention time using a published model, allowing ordering of transition candidates. By exploiting available knowledge and resources to generate the most reliable transitions, this approach negates the need for theoretical prediction of fragmentation and the need to undertake prior "discovery" MS studies. MRMaid is a modular tool built around the Genome Annotating Proteomic Pipeline framework, providing a web-based solution with both descriptive and graphical visualizations of transitions. Predicted transition candidates are ranked based on a novel transition scoring system, and users may filter the results by selecting optional stringency criteria, such as omitting frequently modified residues, constraining the length of peptides, or omitting missed cleavages. Comparison with published transitions showed that MRMaid successfully predicted the peptide and product ion pairs in the majority of cases with appropriate retention time estimates. As the data content of the Genome Annotating Proteomic Pipeline repository increases

  17. Increasing the availability and usability of terrestrial ecology data through geospatial Web services and visualization tools (Invited)

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Santhana Vannan, S.; Cook, R. B.; Wilson, B. E.; Wei, Y.

    2010-12-01

    Terrestrial ecology data sets are produced from diverse data sources such as model output, field data collection, laboratory analysis and remote sensing observation. These data sets can be created, distributed, and consumed in diverse ways as well. However, this diversity can hinder the usability of the data, and limit data users’ abilities to validate and reuse data for science and application purposes. Geospatial web services, such as those described in this paper, are an important means of reducing this burden. Terrestrial ecology researchers generally create the data sets in diverse file formats, with file and data structures tailored to the specific needs of their project, possibly as tabular data, geospatial images, or documentation in a report. Data centers may reformat the data to an archive-stable format and distribute the data sets through one or more protocols, such as FTP, email, and WWW. Because of the diverse data preparation, delivery, and usage patterns, users have to invest time and resources to bring the data into the format and structure most useful for their analysis. This time-consuming data preparation process shifts valuable resources from data analysis to data assembly. To address these issues, the ORNL DAAC, a NASA-sponsored terrestrial ecology data center, has utilized geospatial Web service technology, such as Open Geospatial Consortium (OGC) Web Map Service (WMS) and OGC Web Coverage Service (WCS) standards, to increase the usability and availability of terrestrial ecology data sets. Data sets are standardized into non-proprietary file formats and distributed through OGC Web Service standards. OGC Web services allow the ORNL DAAC to store data sets in a single format and distribute them in multiple ways and formats. Registering the OGC Web services through search catalogues and other spatial data tools allows for publicizing the data sets and makes them more available across the Internet. The ORNL DAAC has also created a Web

  18. MEAT: An Authoring Tool for Generating Adaptable Learning Resources

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Kuo, Yen-Hung; Huang, Yueh-Min

    2009-01-01

    Mobile learning (m-learning) is a new trend in the e-learning field. The learning services in m-learning environments are supported by fundamental functions, especially the content and assessment services, which need an authoring tool to rapidly generate adaptable learning resources. To fulfill the imperious demand, this study proposes an…

  19. A web-based screening tool for near-port air quality assessments

    PubMed Central

    Isakov, Vlad; Barzyk, Timothy M.; Smith, Elizabeth R.; Arunachalam, Saravanan; Naess, Brian; Venkatram, Akula

    2018-01-01

    The Community model for near-PORT applications (C-PORT) is a screening tool with an intended purpose of calculating differences in annual averaged concentration patterns and relative contributions of various source categories over the spatial domain within about 10 km of the port. C-PORT can inform decision-makers and concerned citizens about local air quality due to mobile source emissions related to commercial port activities. It allows users to visualize and evaluate different planning scenarios, helping them identify the best alternatives for making long-term decisions that protect community health and sustainability. The web-based, easy-to-use interface currently includes data from 21 seaports primarily in the Southeastern U.S., and has a map-based interface based on Google Maps. The tool was developed to visualize and assess changes in air quality due to changes in emissions and/or meteorology in order to analyze development scenarios, and is not intended to support or replace any regulatory models or programs. PMID:29681760

  20. Web service tools in the era of forest fire management and elimination

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Poursanidis, Dimitris; Kochilakis, Giorgos; Chrysoulakis, Nektarios; Varella, Vasiliki; Kotroni, Vassiliki; Eftychidis, Giorgos; Lagouvardos, Kostas

    2014-10-01

    Wildfires in forests and forested areas in South Europe, North America, Central Asia and Australia are a diachronic threat with crucial ecological, economic and social impacts. Last decade the frequency, the magnitude and the intensity of fires have increased even more because of the climate change. An efficient response to such disasters requires an effective planning, with an early detection system of the ignition area and an accurate prediction of fire propagation to support the rapid response mechanisms. For this reason, information systems able to predict and visualize the behavior of fires, are valuable tools for fire fighting. Such systems, able also to perform simulations that evaluate the fire development scenarios, based on weather conditions, become valuable Decision Support Tools for fire mitigation planning. A Web-based Information System (WIS) developed in the framework of the FLIRE (Floods and fire risk assessment and management) project, a LIFE+ co-funded by the European Commission research, is presented in this study. The FLIRE WIS use forest fuel maps which have been developed by using generalized fuel maps, satellite data and in-situ observations. Furthermore, it leverages data from meteorological stations and weather forecast from numerical models to feed the fire propagation model with the necessary for the simulations inputs and to visualize the model's results for user defined time periods and steps. The user has real-time access to FLIRE WIS via any web browser from any platform (PC, Laptop, Tablet, Smartphone).

  1. WEBCAP: Web Scheduler for Distance Learning Multimedia Documents with Web Workload Considerations

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Habib, Sami; Safar, Maytham

    2008-01-01

    In many web applications, such as the distance learning, the frequency of refreshing multimedia web documents places a heavy burden on the WWW resources. Moreover, the updated web documents may encounter inordinate delays, which make it difficult to retrieve web documents in time. Here, we present an Internet tool called WEBCAP that can schedule…

  2. UV-POSIT: Web-Based Tools for Rapid and Facile Structural Interpretation of Ultraviolet Photodissociation (UVPD) Mass Spectra

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Rosenberg, Jake; Parker, W. Ryan; Cammarata, Michael B.; Brodbelt, Jennifer S.

    2018-04-01

    UV-POSIT (Ultraviolet Photodissociation Online Structure Interrogation Tools) is a suite of web-based tools designed to facilitate the rapid interpretation of data from native mass spectrometry experiments making use of 193 nm ultraviolet photodissociation (UVPD). The suite includes four separate utilities which assist in the calculation of fragment ion abundances as a function of backbone cleavage sites and sequence position; the localization of charge sites in intact proteins; the calculation of hydrogen elimination propensity for a-type fragment ions; and mass-offset searching of UVPD spectra to identify unknown modifications and assess false positive fragment identifications. UV-POSIT is implemented as a Python/Flask web application hosted at http://uv-posit.cm.utexas.edu. UV-POSIT is available under the MIT license, and the source code is available at https://github.com/jarosenb/UV_POSIT. [Figure not available: see fulltext.

  3. UV-POSIT: Web-Based Tools for Rapid and Facile Structural Interpretation of Ultraviolet Photodissociation (UVPD) Mass Spectra.

    PubMed

    Rosenberg, Jake; Parker, W Ryan; Cammarata, Michael B; Brodbelt, Jennifer S

    2018-06-01

    UV-POSIT (Ultraviolet Photodissociation Online Structure Interrogation Tools) is a suite of web-based tools designed to facilitate the rapid interpretation of data from native mass spectrometry experiments making use of 193 nm ultraviolet photodissociation (UVPD). The suite includes four separate utilities which assist in the calculation of fragment ion abundances as a function of backbone cleavage sites and sequence position; the localization of charge sites in intact proteins; the calculation of hydrogen elimination propensity for a-type fragment ions; and mass-offset searching of UVPD spectra to identify unknown modifications and assess false positive fragment identifications. UV-POSIT is implemented as a Python/Flask web application hosted at http://uv-posit.cm.utexas.edu . UV-POSIT is available under the MIT license, and the source code is available at https://github.com/jarosenb/UV_POSIT . Graphical Abstract.

  4. Web-based tools for modelling and analysis of multivariate data: California ozone pollution activity

    PubMed Central

    Dinov, Ivo D.; Christou, Nicolas

    2014-01-01

    This article presents a hands-on web-based activity motivated by the relation between human health and ozone pollution in California. This case study is based on multivariate data collected monthly at 20 locations in California between 1980 and 2006. Several strategies and tools for data interrogation and exploratory data analysis, model fitting and statistical inference on these data are presented. All components of this case study (data, tools, activity) are freely available online at: http://wiki.stat.ucla.edu/socr/index.php/SOCR_MotionCharts_CAOzoneData. Several types of exploratory (motion charts, box-and-whisker plots, spider charts) and quantitative (inference, regression, analysis of variance (ANOVA)) data analyses tools are demonstrated. Two specific human health related questions (temporal and geographic effects of ozone pollution) are discussed as motivational challenges. PMID:24465054

  5. Web-based tools for modelling and analysis of multivariate data: California ozone pollution activity.

    PubMed

    Dinov, Ivo D; Christou, Nicolas

    2011-09-01

    This article presents a hands-on web-based activity motivated by the relation between human health and ozone pollution in California. This case study is based on multivariate data collected monthly at 20 locations in California between 1980 and 2006. Several strategies and tools for data interrogation and exploratory data analysis, model fitting and statistical inference on these data are presented. All components of this case study (data, tools, activity) are freely available online at: http://wiki.stat.ucla.edu/socr/index.php/SOCR_MotionCharts_CAOzoneData. Several types of exploratory (motion charts, box-and-whisker plots, spider charts) and quantitative (inference, regression, analysis of variance (ANOVA)) data analyses tools are demonstrated. Two specific human health related questions (temporal and geographic effects of ozone pollution) are discussed as motivational challenges.

  6. Dissemination of a Web-Based Tool for Supporting Health Insurance Plan Decisions (Show Me Health Plans): Cross-Sectional Observational Study.

    PubMed

    Zhao, Jingsong; Mir, Nageen; Ackermann, Nicole; Kaphingst, Kimberly A; Politi, Mary C

    2018-06-20

    The rate of uninsured people has decreased dramatically since the Affordable Care Act was passed. To make an informed decision, consumers need assistance to understand the advantages and disadvantages of health insurance plans. The Show Me Health Plans Web-based decision support tool was developed to improve the quality of health insurance selection. In response to the promising effectiveness of Show Me Health Plans in a randomized controlled trial (RCT) and the growing need for Web-based health insurance decision support, the study team used expert recommendations for dissemination and implementation, engaged external stakeholders, and made the Show Me Health Plans tool available to the public. The purpose of this study was to implement the public dissemination of the Show Me Health Plans tool in the state of Missouri and to evaluate its impact compared to the RCT. This study used a cross-sectional observational design. Dissemination phase users were compared with users in the RCT study across the same outcome measures. Time spent using the Show Me Health Plans tool, knowledge, importance rating of 9 health insurance features, and intended plan choice match with algorithm predictions were examined. During the dissemination phase (November 2016 to January 2017), 10,180 individuals visited the SMHP website, and the 1069 users who stayed on the tool for more than one second were included in our analyses. Dissemination phase users were more likely to live outside St. Louis City or County (P<.001), were less likely to be below the federal poverty level (P<.001), and had a higher income (P=.03). Overall, Show Me Health Plans users from St. Louis City or County spent more time on the Show Me Health Plans tool than those from other Missouri counties (P=.04); this association was not observed in the RCT. Total time spent on the tool was not correlated with knowledge scores, which were associated with lower poverty levels (P=.009). The users from the RCT phase were more

  7. Medical student web-based formative assessment tool for renal pathology.

    PubMed

    Bijol, Vanesa; Byrne-Dugan, Cathryn J; Hoenig, Melanie P

    2015-01-01

    Background Web-based formative assessment tools have become widely recognized in medical education as valuable resources for self-directed learning. Objectives To explore the educational value of formative assessment using online quizzes for kidney pathology learning in our renal pathophysiology course. Methods Students were given unrestricted and optional access to quizzes. Performance on quizzed and non-quizzed materials of those who used ('quizzers') and did not use the tool ('non-quizzers') was compared. Frequency of tool usage was analyzed and satisfaction surveys were utilized at the end of the course. Results In total, 82.6% of the students used quizzes. The greatest usage was observed on the day before the final exam. Students repeated interactive and more challenging quizzes more often. Average means between final exam scores for quizzed and unrelated materials were almost equal for 'quizzers' and 'non-quizzers', but 'quizzers' performed statistically better than 'non-quizzers' on both, quizzed (p=0.001) and non-quizzed (p=0.024) topics. In total, 89% of surveyed students thought quizzes improved their learning experience in this course. Conclusions Our new computer-assisted learning tool is popular, and although its use can predict the final exam outcome, it does not provide strong evidence for direct improvement in academic performance. Students who chose to use quizzes did well on all aspects of the final exam and most commonly used quizzes to practice for final exam. Our efforts to revitalize the course material and promote learning by adding interactive online formative assessments improved students' learning experience overall.

  8. Wikis, blogs and podcasts: a new generation of Web-based tools for virtual collaborative clinical practice and education.

    PubMed

    Boulos, Maged N Kamel; Maramba, Inocencio; Wheeler, Steve

    2006-08-15

    We have witnessed a rapid increase in the use of Web-based 'collaborationware' in recent years. These Web 2.0 applications, particularly wikis, blogs and podcasts, have been increasingly adopted by many online health-related professional and educational services. Because of their ease of use and rapidity of deployment, they offer the opportunity for powerful information sharing and ease of collaboration. Wikis are Web sites that can be edited by anyone who has access to them. The word 'blog' is a contraction of 'Web Log' - an online Web journal that can offer a resource rich multimedia environment. Podcasts are repositories of audio and video materials that can be "pushed" to subscribers, even without user intervention. These audio and video files can be downloaded to portable media players that can be taken anywhere, providing the potential for "anytime, anywhere" learning experiences (mobile learning). Wikis, blogs and podcasts are all relatively easy to use, which partly accounts for their proliferation. The fact that there are many free and Open Source versions of these tools may also be responsible for their explosive growth. Thus it would be relatively easy to implement any or all within a Health Professions' Educational Environment. Paradoxically, some of their disadvantages also relate to their openness and ease of use. With virtually anybody able to alter, edit or otherwise contribute to the collaborative Web pages, it can be problematic to gauge the reliability and accuracy of such resources. While arguably, the very process of collaboration leads to a Darwinian type 'survival of the fittest' content within a Web page, the veracity of these resources can be assured through careful monitoring, moderation, and operation of the collaborationware in a closed and secure digital environment. Empirical research is still needed to build our pedagogic evidence base about the different aspects of these tools in the context of medical/health education. If

  9. Wikis, blogs and podcasts: a new generation of Web-based tools for virtual collaborative clinical practice and education

    PubMed Central

    Boulos, Maged N Kamel; Maramba, Inocencio; Wheeler, Steve

    2006-01-01

    Background We have witnessed a rapid increase in the use of Web-based 'collaborationware' in recent years. These Web 2.0 applications, particularly wikis, blogs and podcasts, have been increasingly adopted by many online health-related professional and educational services. Because of their ease of use and rapidity of deployment, they offer the opportunity for powerful information sharing and ease of collaboration. Wikis are Web sites that can be edited by anyone who has access to them. The word 'blog' is a contraction of 'Web Log' – an online Web journal that can offer a resource rich multimedia environment. Podcasts are repositories of audio and video materials that can be "pushed" to subscribers, even without user intervention. These audio and video files can be downloaded to portable media players that can be taken anywhere, providing the potential for "anytime, anywhere" learning experiences (mobile learning). Discussion Wikis, blogs and podcasts are all relatively easy to use, which partly accounts for their proliferation. The fact that there are many free and Open Source versions of these tools may also be responsible for their explosive growth. Thus it would be relatively easy to implement any or all within a Health Professions' Educational Environment. Paradoxically, some of their disadvantages also relate to their openness and ease of use. With virtually anybody able to alter, edit or otherwise contribute to the collaborative Web pages, it can be problematic to gauge the reliability and accuracy of such resources. While arguably, the very process of collaboration leads to a Darwinian type 'survival of the fittest' content within a Web page, the veracity of these resources can be assured through careful monitoring, moderation, and operation of the collaborationware in a closed and secure digital environment. Empirical research is still needed to build our pedagogic evidence base about the different aspects of these tools in the context of medical

  10. An advanced web query interface for biological databases

    PubMed Central

    Latendresse, Mario; Karp, Peter D.

    2010-01-01

    Although most web-based biological databases (DBs) offer some type of web-based form to allow users to author DB queries, these query forms are quite restricted in the complexity of DB queries that they can formulate. They can typically query only one DB, and can query only a single type of object at a time (e.g. genes) with no possible interaction between the objects—that is, in SQL parlance, no joins are allowed between DB objects. Writing precise queries against biological DBs is usually left to a programmer skillful enough in complex DB query languages like SQL. We present a web interface for building precise queries for biological DBs that can construct much more precise queries than most web-based query forms, yet that is user friendly enough to be used by biologists. It supports queries containing multiple conditions, and connecting multiple object types without using the join concept, which is unintuitive to biologists. This interactive web interface is called the Structured Advanced Query Page (SAQP). Users interactively build up a wide range of query constructs. Interactive documentation within the SAQP describes the schema of the queried DBs. The SAQP is based on BioVelo, a query language based on list comprehension. The SAQP is part of the Pathway Tools software and is available as part of several bioinformatics web sites powered by Pathway Tools, including the BioCyc.org site that contains more than 500 Pathway/Genome DBs. PMID:20624715

  11. A web-based tool for the Comprehensive Unit-based Safety Program (CUSP).

    PubMed

    Pronovost, Peter J; King, Jay; Holzmueller, Christine G; Sawyer, Melinda; Bivens, Shauna; Michael, Michelle; Haig, Kathy; Paine, Lori; Moore, Dana; Miller, Marlene

    2006-03-01

    An organization's ability to change is driven by its culture, which in turn has a significant impact on safety. The six-step Comprehensive Unit-Based Safety Program (CUSP) is intended to improve local culture and safety. A Web-based project management tool for CUSP was developed and then pilot tested at two hospitals. HOW ECUSP WORKS: Once a patient safety concern is identified (step 3), a unit-level interdisciplinary safety committee determines issue criticality and starts up the projects (step 4), which are managed using project management tools within eCUSP (step 5). On a project's completion, the results are disseminated through a shared story (step 6). OSF St. Joseph's Medical Center-The Medical Birthing Center (Bloomington, Illinois), identified 11 safety issues, implemented 11 projects, and created 9 shared stories--including one for its Armband Project. The Johns Hopkins Hospital (Baltimore) Medical Progressive Care (MPC4) Unit identified 5 safety issues and implemented 4 ongoing projects, including the intravenous (IV) Tubing Compliance Project. The eCUSP tool's success depends on an organizational commitment to creating a culture of safety.

  12. Hospital-Based Nurses’ Perceptions of the Adoption of Web 2.0 Tools for Knowledge Sharing, Learning, Social Interaction and the Production of Collective Intelligence

    PubMed Central

    2011-01-01

    Background Web 2.0 provides a platform or a set of tools such as blogs, wikis, really simple syndication (RSS), podcasts, tags, social bookmarks, and social networking software for knowledge sharing, learning, social interaction, and the production of collective intelligence in a virtual environment. Web 2.0 is also becoming increasingly popular in e-learning and e-social communities. Objectives The objectives were to investigate how Web 2.0 tools can be applied for knowledge sharing, learning, social interaction, and the production of collective intelligence in the nursing domain and to investigate what behavioral perceptions are involved in the adoption of Web 2.0 tools by nurses. Methods The decomposed technology acceptance model was applied to construct the research model on which the hypotheses were based. A questionnaire was developed based on the model and data from nurses (n = 388) were collected from late January 2009 until April 30, 2009. Pearson’s correlation analysis and t tests were used for data analysis. Results Intention toward using Web 2.0 tools was positively correlated with usage behavior (r = .60, P < .05). Behavioral intention was positively correlated with attitude (r = .72, P < .05), perceived behavioral control (r = .58, P < .05), and subjective norm (r = .45, P < .05). In their decomposed constructs, perceived usefulness (r = .7, P < .05), relative advantage (r = .64, P < .05), and compatibility (r = .60, P < .05) were positively correlated with attitude, but perceived ease of use was not significantly correlated (r = .004, P < .05) with it. Peer (r = .47, P < .05), senior management (r = .24, P < .05), and hospital (r = .45, P < .05) influences had positive correlations with subjective norm. Resource (r = .41, P < .05) and technological (r = .69, P < .05) conditions were positively correlated with perceived behavioral control. Conclusions The identified behavioral perceptions may further health policy makers’ understanding of nurses

  13. StarScan: a web server for scanning small RNA targets from degradome sequencing data.

    PubMed

    Liu, Shun; Li, Jun-Hao; Wu, Jie; Zhou, Ke-Ren; Zhou, Hui; Yang, Jian-Hua; Qu, Liang-Hu

    2015-07-01

    Endogenous small non-coding RNAs (sRNAs), including microRNAs, PIWI-interacting RNAs and small interfering RNAs, play important gene regulatory roles in animals and plants by pairing to the protein-coding and non-coding transcripts. However, computationally assigning these various sRNAs to their regulatory target genes remains technically challenging. Recently, a high-throughput degradome sequencing method was applied to identify biologically relevant sRNA cleavage sites. In this study, an integrated web-based tool, StarScan (sRNA target Scan), was developed for scanning sRNA targets using degradome sequencing data from 20 species. Given a sRNA sequence from plants or animals, our web server performs an ultrafast and exhaustive search for potential sRNA-target interactions in annotated and unannotated genomic regions. The interactions between small RNAs and target transcripts were further evaluated using a novel tool, alignScore. A novel tool, degradomeBinomTest, was developed to quantify the abundance of degradome fragments located at the 9-11th nucleotide from the sRNA 5' end. This is the first web server for discovering potential sRNA-mediated RNA cleavage events in plants and animals, which affords mechanistic insights into the regulatory roles of sRNAs. The StarScan web server is available at http://mirlab.sysu.edu.cn/starscan/. © The Author(s) 2015. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Nucleic Acids Research.

  14. Web-based network analysis and visualization using CellMaps.

    PubMed

    Salavert, Francisco; García-Alonso, Luz; Sánchez, Rubén; Alonso, Roberto; Bleda, Marta; Medina, Ignacio; Dopazo, Joaquín

    2016-10-01

    : CellMaps is an HTML5 open-source web tool that allows displaying, editing, exploring and analyzing biological networks as well as integrating metadata into them. Computations and analyses are remotely executed in high-end servers, and all the functionalities are available through RESTful web services. CellMaps can easily be integrated in any web page by using an available JavaScript API. The application is available at: http://cellmaps.babelomics.org/ and the code can be found in: https://github.com/opencb/cell-maps The client is implemented in JavaScript and the server in C and Java. jdopazo@cipf.es Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online. © The Author 2016. Published by Oxford University Press.

  15. Documenting clinical pharmacist intervention before and after the introduction of a web-based tool.

    PubMed

    Nurgat, Zubeir A; Al-Jazairi, Abdulrazaq S; Abu-Shraie, Nada; Al-Jedai, Ahmed

    2011-04-01

    . Data collection using the web-based application was consistently more complete when compared to the multi-user PC software. The web-based application is an efficient system for documenting pharmacist interventions. Its flexibility and accessibility, as well as its detailed report functionality is a useful tool that will hopefully encourage other primary and secondary care facilities to adopt similar applications.

  16. Web Prep: How to Prepare NAS Reports For Publication on the Web

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Walatka, Pamela; Balakrishnan, Prithika; Clucas, Jean; McCabe, R. Kevin; Felchle, Gail; Brickell, Cristy

    1996-01-01

    This document contains specific advice and requirements for NASA Ames Code IN authors of NAS reports. Much of the information may be of interest to other authors writing for the Web. WebPrep has a graphic Table of Contents in the form of a WebToon, which simulates a discussion between a scientist and a Web publishing consultant. In the WebToon, Frequently Asked Questions about preparing reports for the Web are linked to relevant text in the body of this document. We also provide a text-only Table of Contents. The text for this document is divided into chapters: each chapter corresponds to one frame of the WebToons. The chapter topics are: converting text to HTML, converting 2D graphic images to gif, creating imagemaps and tables, converting movie and audio files to Web formats, supplying 3D interactive data, and (briefly) JAVA capabilities. The last chapter is specifically for NAS staff authors. The Glossary-Index lists web related words and links to topics covered in the main text.

  17. Children and Young People's Views on Web 2.0 Technologies. LGA Research Report

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Rudd, Peter; Walker, Matthew

    2010-01-01

    Web 2.0 technologies are online tools that allow users to share, collaborate and interact with one another. This small-scale project focused on young people's personal use of social media, and on the potential to use these tools to collect the views of young people and involve them in democracy in communities and local authorities. The main…

  18. Tracking the fate of watershed nitrogen: The “N-Sink” Web Tool and Two Case Studies

    EPA Science Inventory

    This product describes the application of a web-based decision support tool, N-Sink, in two case study watersheds. N-Sink is a customized ArcMap© program that provides maps of N sourcesand sinks within a watershed, and estimates the delivery efficiency of N movement from sou...

  19. OmicsNet: a web-based tool for creation and visual analysis of biological networks in 3D space.

    PubMed

    Zhou, Guangyan; Xia, Jianguo

    2018-06-07

    Biological networks play increasingly important roles in omics data integration and systems biology. Over the past decade, many excellent tools have been developed to support creation, analysis and visualization of biological networks. However, important limitations remain: most tools are standalone programs, the majority of them focus on protein-protein interaction (PPI) or metabolic networks, and visualizations often suffer from 'hairball' effects when networks become large. To help address these limitations, we developed OmicsNet - a novel web-based tool that allows users to easily create different types of molecular interaction networks and visually explore them in a three-dimensional (3D) space. Users can upload one or multiple lists of molecules of interest (genes/proteins, microRNAs, transcription factors or metabolites) to create and merge different types of biological networks. The 3D network visualization system was implemented using the powerful Web Graphics Library (WebGL) technology that works natively in most major browsers. OmicsNet supports force-directed layout, multi-layered perspective layout, as well as spherical layout to help visualize and navigate complex networks. A rich set of functions have been implemented to allow users to perform coloring, shading, topology analysis, and enrichment analysis. OmicsNet is freely available at http://www.omicsnet.ca.

  20. Supporting Open Access to European Academic Courses: The ASK-CDM-ECTS Tool

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Sampson, Demetrios G.; Zervas, Panagiotis

    2013-01-01

    Purpose: This paper aims to present and evaluate a web-based tool, namely ASK-CDM-ECTS, which facilitates authoring and publishing on the web descriptions of (open) academic courses in machine-readable format using an application profile of the Course Description Metadata (CDM) specification, namely CDM-ECTS. Design/methodology/approach: The paper…

  1. WebViz: A web browser based application for collaborative analysis of 3D data

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Ruegg, C. S.

    2011-12-01

    In the age of high speed Internet where people can interact instantly, scientific tools have lacked technology which can incorporate this concept of communication using the web. To solve this issue a web application for geological studies has been created, tentatively titled WebViz. This web application utilizes tools provided by Google Web Toolkit to create an AJAX web application capable of features found in non web based software. Using these tools, a web application can be created to act as piece of software from anywhere in the globe with a reasonably speedy Internet connection. An application of this technology can be seen with data regarding the recent tsunami from the major japan earthquakes. After constructing the appropriate data to fit a computer render software called HVR, WebViz can request images of the tsunami data and display it to anyone who has access to the application. This convenience alone makes WebViz a viable solution, but the option to interact with this data with others around the world causes WebViz to be taken as a serious computational tool. WebViz also can be used on any javascript enabled browser such as those found on modern tablets and smart phones over a fast wireless connection. Due to the fact that WebViz's current state is built using Google Web Toolkit the portability of the application is in it's most efficient form. Though many developers have been involved with the project, each person has contributed to increase the usability and speed of the application. In the project's most recent form a dramatic speed increase has been designed as well as a more efficient user interface. The speed increase has been informally noticed in recent uses of the application in China and Australia with the hosting server being located at the University of Minnesota. The user interface has been improved to not only look better but the functionality has been improved. Major functions of the application are rotating the 3D object using buttons

  2. TriatoKey: a web and mobile tool for biodiversity identification of Brazilian triatomine species

    PubMed Central

    Márcia de Oliveira, Luciana; Nogueira de Brito, Raissa; Anderson Souza Guimarães, Paul; Vitor Mastrângelo Amaro dos Santos, Rômulo; Gonçalves Diotaiuti, Liléia; de Cássia Moreira de Souza, Rita

    2017-01-01

    Abstract Triatomines are blood-sucking insects that transmit the causative agent of Chagas disease, Trypanosoma cruzi. Despite being recognized as a difficult task, the correct taxonomic identification of triatomine species is crucial for vector control in Latin America, where the disease is endemic. In this context, we have developed a web and mobile tool based on PostgreSQL database to help healthcare technicians to overcome the difficulties to identify triatomine vectors when the technical expertise is missing. The web and mobile version makes use of real triatomine species pictures and dichotomous key method to support the identification of potential vectors that occur in Brazil. It provides a user example-driven interface with simple language. TriatoKey can also be useful for educational purposes. Database URL: http://triatokey.cpqrr.fiocruz.br PMID:28605769

  3. MAJIQ-SPEL: Web-tool to interrogate classical and complex splicing variations from RNA-Seq data.

    PubMed

    Green, Christopher J; Gazzara, Matthew R; Barash, Yoseph

    2017-09-11

    Analysis of RNA sequencing (RNA-Seq) data have highlighted the fact that most genes undergo alternative splicing (AS) and that these patterns are tightly regulated. Many of these events are complex, resulting in numerous possible isoforms that quickly become difficult to visualize, interpret, and experimentally validate. To address these challenges we developed MAJIQ-SPEL, a web-tool that takes as input local splicing variations (LSVs) quantified from RNA-Seq data and provides users with visualization and quantification of gene isoforms associated with those. Importantly, MAJIQ-SPEL is able to handle both classical (binary) and complex, non-binary, splicing variations. Using a matching primer design algorithm it also suggests users possible primers for experimental validation by RT-PCR and displays those, along with the matching protein domains affected by the LSV, on UCSC Genome Browser for further downstream analysis. Program and code will be available at http://majiq.biociphers.org/majiq-spel. Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online. © The Author (2017). Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com

  4. Applying Web Usage Mining for Personalizing Hyperlinks in Web-Based Adaptive Educational Systems

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Romero, Cristobal; Ventura, Sebastian; Zafra, Amelia; de Bra, Paul

    2009-01-01

    Nowadays, the application of Web mining techniques in e-learning and Web-based adaptive educational systems is increasing exponentially. In this paper, we propose an advanced architecture for a personalization system to facilitate Web mining. A specific Web mining tool is developed and a recommender engine is integrated into the AHA! system in…

  5. Dynamic Web Pages: Performance Impact on Web Servers.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Kothari, Bhupesh; Claypool, Mark

    2001-01-01

    Discussion of Web servers and requests for dynamic pages focuses on experimentally measuring and analyzing the performance of the three dynamic Web page generation technologies: CGI, FastCGI, and Servlets. Develops a multivariate linear regression model and predicts Web server performance under some typical dynamic requests. (Author/LRW)

  6. Visible Earthquakes: a web-based tool for visualizing and modeling InSAR earthquake data

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Funning, G. J.; Cockett, R.

    2012-12-01

    InSAR (Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar) is a technique for measuring the deformation of the ground using satellite radar data. One of the principal applications of this method is in the study of earthquakes; in the past 20 years over 70 earthquakes have been studied in this way, and forthcoming satellite missions promise to enable the routine and timely study of events in the future. Despite the utility of the technique and its widespread adoption by the research community, InSAR does not feature in the teaching curricula of most university geoscience departments. This is, we believe, due to a lack of accessibility to software and data. Existing tools for the visualization and modeling of interferograms are often research-oriented, command line-based and/or prohibitively expensive. Here we present a new web-based interactive tool for comparing real InSAR data with simple elastic models. The overall design of this tool was focused on ease of access and use. This tool should allow interested nonspecialists to gain a feel for the use of such data and greatly facilitate integration of InSAR into upper division geoscience courses, giving students practice in comparing actual data to modeled results. The tool, provisionally named 'Visible Earthquakes', uses web-based technologies to instantly render the displacement field that would be observable using InSAR for a given fault location, geometry, orientation, and slip. The user can adjust these 'source parameters' using a simple, clickable interface, and see how these affect the resulting model interferogram. By visually matching the model interferogram to a real earthquake interferogram (processed separately and included in the web tool) a user can produce their own estimates of the earthquake's source parameters. Once satisfied with the fit of their models, users can submit their results and see how they compare with the distribution of all other contributed earthquake models, as well as the mean and median

  7. Quality of reporting web-based and non-web-based survey studies: What authors, reviewers and consumers should consider.

    PubMed

    Turk, Tarek; Elhady, Mohamed Tamer; Rashed, Sherwet; Abdelkhalek, Mariam; Nasef, Somia Ahmed; Khallaf, Ashraf Mohamed; Mohammed, Abdelrahman Tarek; Attia, Andrew Wassef; Adhikari, Purushottam; Amin, Mohamed Alsabbahi; Hirayama, Kenji; Huy, Nguyen Tien

    2018-01-01

    Several influential aspects of survey research have been under-investigated and there is a lack of guidance on reporting survey studies, especially web-based projects. In this review, we aim to investigate the reporting practices and quality of both web- and non-web-based survey studies to enhance the quality of reporting medical evidence that is derived from survey studies and to maximize the efficiency of its consumption. Reporting practices and quality of 100 random web- and 100 random non-web-based articles published from 2004 to 2016 were assessed using the SUrvey Reporting GuidelinE (SURGE). The CHERRIES guideline was also used to assess the reporting quality of Web-based studies. Our results revealed a potential gap in the reporting of many necessary checklist items in both web-based and non-web-based survey studies including development, description and testing of the questionnaire, the advertisement and administration of the questionnaire, sample representativeness and response rates, incentives, informed consent, and methods of statistical analysis. Our findings confirm the presence of major discrepancies in reporting results of survey-based studies. This can be attributed to the lack of availability of updated universal checklists for quality of reporting standards. We have summarized our findings in a table that may serve as a roadmap for future guidelines and checklists, which will hopefully include all types and all aspects of survey research.

  8. From Web accessibility to Web adaptability.

    PubMed

    Kelly, Brian; Nevile, Liddy; Sloan, David; Fanou, Sotiris; Ellison, Ruth; Herrod, Lisa

    2009-07-01

    This article asserts that current approaches to enhance the accessibility of Web resources fail to provide a solid foundation for the development of a robust and future-proofed framework. In particular, they fail to take advantage of new technologies and technological practices. The article introduces a framework for Web adaptability, which encourages the development of Web-based services that can be resilient to the diversity of uses of such services, the target audience, available resources, technical innovations, organisational policies and relevant definitions of 'accessibility'. The article refers to a series of author-focussed approaches to accessibility through which the authors and others have struggled to find ways to promote accessibility for people with disabilities. These approaches depend upon the resource author's determination of the anticipated users' needs and their provision. Through approaches labelled as 1.0, 2.0 and 3.0, the authors have widened their focus to account for contexts and individual differences in target audiences. Now, the authors want to recognise the role of users in determining their engagement with resources (including services). To distinguish this new approach, the term 'adaptability' has been used to replace 'accessibility'; new definitions of accessibility have been adopted, and the authors have reviewed their previous work to clarify how it is relevant to the new approach. Accessibility 1.0 is here characterised as a technical approach in which authors are told how to construct resources for a broadly defined audience. This is known as universal design. Accessibility 2.0 was introduced to point to the need to account for the context in which resources would be used, to help overcome inadequacies identified in the purely technical approach. Accessibility 3.0 moved the focus on users from a homogenised universal definition to recognition of the idiosyncratic needs and preferences of individuals and to cater for them. All of

  9. A Java tool for dynamic web-based 3D visualization of anatomy and overlapping gene or protein expression patterns.

    PubMed

    Gerth, Victor E; Vize, Peter D

    2005-04-01

    The Gene Expression Viewer is a web-launched three-dimensional visualization tool, tailored to compare surface reconstructions of multi-channel image volumes generated by confocal microscopy or micro-CT.

  10. Student Inquiry and Web 2.0

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Berger, Pam

    2010-01-01

    Web 2.0 applications are changing how educators interact both with each other and with their students. Educators can use these new Web tools daily to create, share, socialize, and collaborate with students, colleagues, and newly developed network contacts. School librarians are finding that Web 2.0 tools are bringing them more ways to embrace and…

  11. Web-based tool for visualization of electric field distribution in deep-seated body structures and planning of electroporation-based treatments.

    PubMed

    Marčan, Marija; Pavliha, Denis; Kos, Bor; Forjanič, Tadeja; Miklavčič, Damijan

    2015-01-01

    Treatments based on electroporation are a new and promising approach to treating tumors, especially non-resectable ones. The success of the treatment is, however, heavily dependent on coverage of the entire tumor volume with a sufficiently high electric field. Ensuring complete coverage in the case of deep-seated tumors is not trivial and can in best way be ensured by patient-specific treatment planning. The basis of the treatment planning process consists of two complex tasks: medical image segmentation, and numerical modeling and optimization. In addition to previously developed segmentation algorithms for several tissues (human liver, hepatic vessels, bone tissue and canine brain) and the algorithms for numerical modeling and optimization of treatment parameters, we developed a web-based tool to facilitate the translation of the algorithms and their application in the clinic. The developed web-based tool automatically builds a 3D model of the target tissue from the medical images uploaded by the user and then uses this 3D model to optimize treatment parameters. The tool enables the user to validate the results of the automatic segmentation and make corrections if necessary before delivering the final treatment plan. Evaluation of the tool was performed by five independent experts from four different institutions. During the evaluation, we gathered data concerning user experience and measured performance times for different components of the tool. Both user reports and performance times show significant reduction in treatment-planning complexity and time-consumption from 1-2 days to a few hours. The presented web-based tool is intended to facilitate the treatment planning process and reduce the time needed for it. It is crucial for facilitating expansion of electroporation-based treatments in the clinic and ensuring reliable treatment for the patients. The additional value of the tool is the possibility of easy upgrade and integration of modules with new

  12. The APA Style Converter: a Web-based interface for converting articles to APA style for publication.

    PubMed

    Li, Ping; Cunningham, Krystal

    2005-05-01

    The APA Style Converter is a Web-based tool with which authors may prepare their articles in APA style according to the APA Publication Manual (5th ed.). The Converter provides a user-friendly interface that allows authors to copy and paste text and upload figures through the Web, and it automatically converts all texts, references, and figures to a structured article in APA style. The output is saved in PDF or RTF format, ready for either electronic submission or hardcopy printing.

  13. ClustVis: a web tool for visualizing clustering of multivariate data using Principal Component Analysis and heatmap

    PubMed Central

    Metsalu, Tauno; Vilo, Jaak

    2015-01-01

    The Principal Component Analysis (PCA) is a widely used method of reducing the dimensionality of high-dimensional data, often followed by visualizing two of the components on the scatterplot. Although widely used, the method is lacking an easy-to-use web interface that scientists with little programming skills could use to make plots of their own data. The same applies to creating heatmaps: it is possible to add conditional formatting for Excel cells to show colored heatmaps, but for more advanced features such as clustering and experimental annotations, more sophisticated analysis tools have to be used. We present a web tool called ClustVis that aims to have an intuitive user interface. Users can upload data from a simple delimited text file that can be created in a spreadsheet program. It is possible to modify data processing methods and the final appearance of the PCA and heatmap plots by using drop-down menus, text boxes, sliders etc. Appropriate defaults are given to reduce the time needed by the user to specify input parameters. As an output, users can download PCA plot and heatmap in one of the preferred file formats. This web server is freely available at http://biit.cs.ut.ee/clustvis/. PMID:25969447

  14. Web tools for effective retrieval, visualization, and evaluation of cardiology medical images and records

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Masseroli, Marco; Pinciroli, Francesco

    2000-12-01

    To provide easy retrieval, integration and evaluation of multimodal cardiology images and data in a web browser environment, distributed application technologies and java programming were used to implement a client-server architecture based on software agents. The server side manages secure connections and queries to heterogeneous remote databases and file systems containing patient personal and clinical data. The client side is a Java applet running in a web browser and providing a friendly medical user interface to perform queries on patient and medical test dat and integrate and visualize properly the various query results. A set of tools based on Java Advanced Imaging API enables to process and analyze the retrieved cardiology images, and quantify their features in different regions of interest. The platform-independence Java technology makes the developed prototype easy to be managed in a centralized form and provided in each site where an intranet or internet connection can be located. Giving the healthcare providers effective tools for querying, visualizing and evaluating comprehensively cardiology medical images and records in all locations where they can need them- i.e. emergency, operating theaters, ward, or even outpatient clinics- the developed prototype represents an important aid in providing more efficient diagnoses and medical treatments.

  15. CoNVaQ: a web tool for copy number variation-based association studies.

    PubMed

    Larsen, Simon Jonas; do Canto, Luisa Matos; Rogatto, Silvia Regina; Baumbach, Jan

    2018-05-18

    Copy number variations (CNVs) are large segments of the genome that are duplicated or deleted. Structural variations in the genome have been linked to many complex diseases. Similar to how genome-wide association studies (GWAS) have helped discover single-nucleotide polymorphisms linked to disease phenotypes, the extension of GWAS to CNVs has aided the discovery of structural variants associated with human traits and diseases. We present CoNVaQ, an easy-to-use web-based tool for CNV-based association studies. The web service allows users to upload two sets of CNV segments and search for genomic regions where the occurrence of CNVs is significantly associated with the phenotype. CoNVaQ provides two models: a simple statistical model using Fisher's exact test and a novel query-based model matching regions to user-defined queries. For each region, the method computes a global q-value statistic by repeated permutation of samples among the populations. We demonstrate our platform by using it to analyze a data set of HPV-positive and HPV-negative penile cancer patients. CoNVaQ provides a simple workflow for performing CNV-based association studies. It is made available as a web platform in order to provide a user-friendly workflow for biologists and clinicians to carry out CNV data analysis without installing any software. Through the web interface, users are also able to analyze their results to find overrepresented GO terms and pathways. In addition, our method is also available as a package for the R programming language. CoNVaQ is available at https://convaq.compbio.sdu.dk .

  16. Perceived Benefits and Attitudes of Student Teachers to Web-Quest as a Motivating, Creative and Inquiry-Based Learning Tool in Education

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Aina, Samuel Ayobami; Sofowora, Alaba Olaniyi

    2013-01-01

    This study discussed how the Department of Teacher Education, University of Ibadan utilized Web-Quest as a motivating and creative tool to teach a compulsory and large pre-service teachers' Course (TEE 304) The study also investigated the attitude and perception of pre-service teachers to the use of Web-Quest. The results showed that the sample…

  17. Going, going, still there: using the WebCite service to permanently archive cited web pages.

    PubMed

    Eysenbach, Gunther; Trudel, Mathieu

    2005-12-30

    Scholars are increasingly citing electronic "web references" which are not preserved in libraries or full text archives. WebCite is a new standard for citing web references. To "webcite" a document involves archiving the cited Web page through www.webcitation.org and citing the WebCite permalink instead of (or in addition to) the unstable live Web page. This journal has amended its "instructions for authors" accordingly, asking authors to archive cited Web pages before submitting a manuscript. Almost 200 other journals are already using the system. We discuss the rationale for WebCite, its technology, and how scholars, editors, and publishers can benefit from the service. Citing scholars initiate an archiving process of all cited Web references, ideally before they submit a manuscript. Authors of online documents and websites which are expected to be cited by others can ensure that their work is permanently available by creating an archived copy using WebCite and providing the citation information including the WebCite link on their Web document(s). Editors should ask their authors to cache all cited Web addresses (Uniform Resource Locators, or URLs) "prospectively" before submitting their manuscripts to their journal. Editors and publishers should also instruct their copyeditors to cache cited Web material if the author has not done so already. Finally, WebCite can process publisher submitted "citing articles" (submitted for example as eXtensible Markup Language [XML] documents) to automatically archive all cited Web pages shortly before or on publication. Finally, WebCite can act as a focussed crawler, caching retrospectively references of already published articles. Copyright issues are addressed by honouring respective Internet standards (robot exclusion files, no-cache and no-archive tags). Long-term preservation is ensured by agreements with libraries and digital preservation organizations. The resulting WebCite Index may also have applications for research

  18. D-MATRIX: A web tool for constructing weight matrix of conserved DNA motifs

    PubMed Central

    Sen, Naresh; Mishra, Manoj; Khan, Feroz; Meena, Abha; Sharma, Ashok

    2009-01-01

    Despite considerable efforts to date, DNA motif prediction in whole genome remains a challenge for researchers. Currently the genome wide motif prediction tools required either direct pattern sequence (for single motif) or weight matrix (for multiple motifs). Although there are known motif pattern databases and tools for genome level prediction but no tool for weight matrix construction. Considering this, we developed a D-MATRIX tool which predicts the different types of weight matrix based on user defined aligned motif sequence set and motif width. For retrieval of known motif sequences user can access the commonly used databases such as TFD, RegulonDB, DBTBS, Transfac. D­MATRIX program uses a simple statistical approach for weight matrix construction, which can be converted into different file formats according to user requirement. It provides the possibility to identify the conserved motifs in the co­regulated genes or whole genome. As example, we successfully constructed the weight matrix of LexA transcription factor binding site with the help of known sos­box cis­regulatory elements in Deinococcus radiodurans genome. The algorithm is implemented in C-Sharp and wrapped in ASP.Net to maintain a user friendly web interface. D­MATRIX tool is accessible through the CIMAP domain network. Availability http://203.190.147.116/dmatrix/ PMID:19759861

  19. D-MATRIX: a web tool for constructing weight matrix of conserved DNA motifs.

    PubMed

    Sen, Naresh; Mishra, Manoj; Khan, Feroz; Meena, Abha; Sharma, Ashok

    2009-07-27

    Despite considerable efforts to date, DNA motif prediction in whole genome remains a challenge for researchers. Currently the genome wide motif prediction tools required either direct pattern sequence (for single motif) or weight matrix (for multiple motifs). Although there are known motif pattern databases and tools for genome level prediction but no tool for weight matrix construction. Considering this, we developed a D-MATRIX tool which predicts the different types of weight matrix based on user defined aligned motif sequence set and motif width. For retrieval of known motif sequences user can access the commonly used databases such as TFD, RegulonDB, DBTBS, Transfac. D-MATRIX program uses a simple statistical approach for weight matrix construction, which can be converted into different file formats according to user requirement. It provides the possibility to identify the conserved motifs in the co-regulated genes or whole genome. As example, we successfully constructed the weight matrix of LexA transcription factor binding site with the help of known sos-box cis-regulatory elements in Deinococcus radiodurans genome. The algorithm is implemented in C-Sharp and wrapped in ASP.Net to maintain a user friendly web interface. D-MATRIX tool is accessible through the CIMAP domain network. http://203.190.147.116/dmatrix/

  20. NMRPro: an integrated web component for interactive processing and visualization of NMR spectra.

    PubMed

    Mohamed, Ahmed; Nguyen, Canh Hao; Mamitsuka, Hiroshi

    2016-07-01

    The popularity of using NMR spectroscopy in metabolomics and natural products has driven the development of an array of NMR spectral analysis tools and databases. Particularly, web applications are well used recently because they are platform-independent and easy to extend through reusable web components. Currently available web applications provide the analysis of NMR spectra. However, they still lack the necessary processing and interactive visualization functionalities. To overcome these limitations, we present NMRPro, a web component that can be easily incorporated into current web applications, enabling easy-to-use online interactive processing and visualization. NMRPro integrates server-side processing with client-side interactive visualization through three parts: a python package to efficiently process large NMR datasets on the server-side, a Django App managing server-client interaction, and SpecdrawJS for client-side interactive visualization. Demo and installation instructions are available at http://mamitsukalab.org/tools/nmrpro/ mohamed@kuicr.kyoto-u.ac.jp Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online. © The Author 2016. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

  1. WebSat--a web software for microsatellite marker development.

    PubMed

    Martins, Wellington Santos; Lucas, Divino César Soares; Neves, Kelligton Fabricio de Souza; Bertioli, David John

    2009-01-01

    Simple sequence repeats (SSR), also known as microsatellites, have been extensively used as molecular markers due to their abundance and high degree of polymorphism. We have developed a simple to use web software, called WebSat, for microsatellite molecular marker prediction and development. WebSat is accessible through the Internet, requiring no program installation. Although a web solution, it makes use of Ajax techniques, providing a rich, responsive user interface. WebSat allows the submission of sequences, visualization of microsatellites and the design of primers suitable for their amplification. The program allows full control of parameters and the easy export of the resulting data, thus facilitating the development of microsatellite markers. The web tool may be accessed at http://purl.oclc.org/NET/websat/

  2. Tools for Administration of a UNIX-Based Network

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    LeClaire, Stephen; Farrar, Edward

    2004-01-01

    Several computer programs have been developed to enable efficient administration of a large, heterogeneous, UNIX-based computing and communication network that includes a variety of computers connected to a variety of subnetworks. One program provides secure software tools for administrators to create, modify, lock, and delete accounts of specific users. This program also provides tools for users to change their UNIX passwords and log-in shells. These tools check for errors. Another program comprises a client and a server component that, together, provide a secure mechanism to create, modify, and query quota levels on a network file system (NFS) mounted by use of the VERITAS File SystemJ software. The client software resides on an internal secure computer with a secure Web interface; one can gain access to the client software from any authorized computer capable of running web-browser software. The server software resides on a UNIX computer configured with the VERITAS software system. Directories where VERITAS quotas are applied are NFS-mounted. Another program is a Web-based, client/server Internet Protocol (IP) address tool that facilitates maintenance lookup of information about IP addresses for a network of computers.

  3. ADF/ADC Web Tools for Browsing and Visualizing Astronomical Catalogs and NASA Astrophysics Mission Metadata

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Shaya, E.; Kargatis, V.; Blackwell, J.; Borne, K.; White, R. A.; Cheung, C.

    1998-05-01

    Several new web based services have been introduced this year by the Astrophysics Data Facility (ADF) at the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center. IMPReSS is a graphical interface to astrophysics databases that presents the user with the footprints of observations of space-based missions. It also aids astronomers in retrieving these data by sending requests to distributed data archives. The VIEWER is a reader of ADC astronomical catalogs and journal tables that allows subsetting of catalogs by column choices and range selection and provides database-like search capability within each table. With it, the user can easily find the table data most appropriate for their purposes and then download either the subset table or the original table. CATSEYE is a tool that plots output tables from the VIEWER (and soon AMASE), making exploring the datasets fast and easy. Having completed the basic functionality of these systems, we are enhancing the site to provide advanced functionality. These will include: market basket storage of tables and records of VIEWER output for IMPReSS and AstroBrowse queries, non-HTML table responses to AstroBrowse type queries, general column arithmetic, modularity to allow entrance into the sequence of web pages at any point, histogram plots, navigable maps, and overplotting of catalog objects on mission footprint maps. When completed, the ADF/ADC web facilities will provide astronomical tabled data and mission retrieval information in several hyperlinked environments geared for users at any level, from the school student to the typical astronomer to the expert datamining tools at state-of-the-art data centers.

  4. CsSNP: A Web-Based Tool for the Detecting of Comparative Segments SNPs.

    PubMed

    Wang, Yi; Wang, Shuangshuang; Zhou, Dongjie; Yang, Shuai; Xu, Yongchao; Yang, Chao; Yang, Long

    2016-07-01

    SNP (single nucleotide polymorphism) is a popular tool for the study of genetic diversity, evolution, and other areas. Therefore, it is necessary to develop a convenient, utility, robust, rapid, and open source detecting-SNP tool for all researchers. Since the detection of SNPs needs special software and series steps including alignment, detection, analysis and present, the study of SNPs is limited for nonprofessional users. CsSNP (Comparative segments SNP, http://biodb.sdau.edu.cn/cssnp/ ) is a freely available web tool based on the Blat, Blast, and Perl programs to detect comparative segments SNPs and to show the detail information of SNPs. The results are filtered and presented in the statistics figure and a Gbrowse map. This platform contains the reference genomic sequences and coding sequences of 60 plant species, and also provides new opportunities for the users to detect SNPs easily. CsSNP is provided a convenient tool for nonprofessional users to find comparative segments SNPs in their own sequences, and give the users the information and the analysis of SNPs, and display these data in a dynamic map. It provides a new method to detect SNPs and may accelerate related studies.

  5. Life Cycle Project Plan Outline: Web Sites and Web-based Applications

    EPA Pesticide Factsheets

    This tool is a guideline for planning and checking for 508 compliance on web sites and web based applications. Determine which EIT components are covered or excepted, which 508 standards and requirements apply, and how to implement them.

  6. Document-Centred Discourse on the Web: A Publishing Tool for Students, Tutors and Researchers.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Shum, Simon Buckingham; Sumner, Tamara

    This paper describes how the authors are exploiting the potential of interactive World Wide Web media to support a central part of academic life--the publishing, critiquing, and discussion of documents. The paper begins with an overview of documents in academic life and a discussion of paper-based or "papyrocentric" print and scholarly…

  7. KAT: A Flexible XML-based Knowledge Authoring Environment

    PubMed Central

    Hulse, Nathan C.; Rocha, Roberto A.; Del Fiol, Guilherme; Bradshaw, Richard L.; Hanna, Timothy P.; Roemer, Lorrie K.

    2005-01-01

    As part of an enterprise effort to develop new clinical information systems at Intermountain Health Care, the authors have built a knowledge authoring tool that facilitates the development and refinement of medical knowledge content. At present, users of the application can compose order sets and an assortment of other structured clinical knowledge documents based on XML schemas. The flexible nature of the application allows the immediate authoring of new types of documents once an appropriate XML schema and accompanying Web form have been developed and stored in a shared repository. The need for a knowledge acquisition tool stems largely from the desire for medical practitioners to be able to write their own content for use within clinical applications. We hypothesize that medical knowledge content for clinical use can be successfully created and maintained through XML-based document frameworks containing structured and coded knowledge. PMID:15802477

  8. MRMaid, the Web-based Tool for Designing Multiple Reaction Monitoring (MRM) Transitions*

    PubMed Central

    Mead, Jennifer A.; Bianco, Luca; Ottone, Vanessa; Barton, Chris; Kay, Richard G.; Lilley, Kathryn S.; Bond, Nicholas J.; Bessant, Conrad

    2009-01-01

    Multiple reaction monitoring (MRM) of peptides uses tandem mass spectrometry to quantify selected proteins of interest, such as those previously identified in differential studies. Using this technique, the specificity of precursor to product transitions is harnessed for quantitative analysis of multiple proteins in a single sample. The design of transitions is critical for the success of MRM experiments, but predicting signal intensity of peptides and fragmentation patterns ab initio is challenging given existing methods. The tool presented here, MRMaid (pronounced “mermaid”) offers a novel alternative for rapid design of MRM transitions for the proteomics researcher. The program uses a combination of knowledge of the properties of optimal MRM transitions taken from expert practitioners and literature with MS/MS evidence derived from interrogation of a database of peptide identifications and their associated mass spectra. The tool also predicts retention time using a published model, allowing ordering of transition candidates. By exploiting available knowledge and resources to generate the most reliable transitions, this approach negates the need for theoretical prediction of fragmentation and the need to undertake prior “discovery” MS studies. MRMaid is a modular tool built around the Genome Annotating Proteomic Pipeline framework, providing a web-based solution with both descriptive and graphical visualizations of transitions. Predicted transition candidates are ranked based on a novel transition scoring system, and users may filter the results by selecting optional stringency criteria, such as omitting frequently modified residues, constraining the length of peptides, or omitting missed cleavages. Comparison with published transitions showed that MRMaid successfully predicted the peptide and product ion pairs in the majority of cases with appropriate retention time estimates. As the data content of the Genome Annotating Proteomic Pipeline repository

  9. LimTox: a web tool for applied text mining of adverse event and toxicity associations of compounds, drugs and genes.

    PubMed

    Cañada, Andres; Capella-Gutierrez, Salvador; Rabal, Obdulia; Oyarzabal, Julen; Valencia, Alfonso; Krallinger, Martin

    2017-07-03

    A considerable effort has been devoted to retrieve systematically information for genes and proteins as well as relationships between them. Despite the importance of chemical compounds and drugs as a central bio-entity in pharmacological and biological research, only a limited number of freely available chemical text-mining/search engine technologies are currently accessible. Here we present LimTox (Literature Mining for Toxicology), a web-based online biomedical search tool with special focus on adverse hepatobiliary reactions. It integrates a range of text mining, named entity recognition and information extraction components. LimTox relies on machine-learning, rule-based, pattern-based and term lookup strategies. This system processes scientific abstracts, a set of full text articles and medical agency assessment reports. Although the main focus of LimTox is on adverse liver events, it enables also basic searches for other organ level toxicity associations (nephrotoxicity, cardiotoxicity, thyrotoxicity and phospholipidosis). This tool supports specialized search queries for: chemical compounds/drugs, genes (with additional emphasis on key enzymes in drug metabolism, namely P450 cytochromes-CYPs) and biochemical liver markers. The LimTox website is free and open to all users and there is no login requirement. LimTox can be accessed at: http://limtox.bioinfo.cnio.es. © The Author(s) 2017. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Nucleic Acids Research.

  10. Web Browser Trends and Technologies.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Goodwin-Jones, Bob

    2000-01-01

    Discusses Web browsers and how their capabilities have been expanded, support for Web browsing on different devices (cell phones, palmtop computers, TV sets), and browser support for the next-generation Web authoring language, XML ("extensible markup language"). (Author/VWL)

  11. Rubric Authoring Tool Supporting Cognitive Skills Assessment across an Institution

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Simper, Natalie

    2018-01-01

    This paper explores a method to support instructors in assessing cognitive skills in their course, designed to enable aggregation of data across an institution. A rubric authoring tool, "BASICS" (Building Assessment Scaffolds for Intellectual Cognitive Skills) was built as part of the Queen's University Learning Outcomes Assessment (LOA)…

  12. WebGL for Rosetta Science Planning

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Schmidt, Albrecht; Völk, Stefan; Grieger, Björn

    2013-04-01

    Rosetta is a mission of the European Space Agency (ESA) to rendez-vous with comet Churyumov-Gerasimenko in 2014. The trajectory and operations of the mission are particularly complex, have many free parameters and are novel to the community. To support science planning, communicate operational ideas and disseminate operational scenarios to the scientific community, the science ground segment makes use of Web-based visualisation technologies. Using the recent standard WebGL, static pages of time-dependent three-dimensional views of the spacecraft and the field-of-views of the instruments are generated, directly from the operational files. These can then be viewed in modern Web browsers for understanding or verification, be analysed and correlated with other studies. Variable timesteps make it possible to provide both overviews and detailed animated scenes. The technical challenges that are particular to Web-based environments include: (1) In traditional OpenGL, is much easier to compute needed data on demand since the visualisation runs natively on a usually quite powerful computer. In WebGL application, since requests for additional data have to be passed through a Web server, they are more complex and also require a more complex infrastructure. (2) The volume of data that can be kept in a browser environment is limited and has to be transferred over often slow network links. Thus, careful design and reduction of data is required. (3) Although browser support for WebGL has improved since the authors started using it, it is often not well supported on mobile and small devices. (4) Web browsers often only support limited end user interactions with a mouse or keyboards. While some of the challenges can be expected to become less important as technological progress continues, others seem to be more inherent to the approach. On the positive side, the authors' experiences include: (1) low threshold in the community to using the visualisations, (2), thus, cooperative use

  13. The New Metrics of Scholarly Authority

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Jensen, Michael

    2007-01-01

    As the Web evolves, so will the ways people measure scholarly authority. Scholarly authority is being influenced by many of the features that have collectively been dubbed Web 2.0 by Tim O'Reilly and others, and what the author will call Authority 2.0 in order to explore more fully the shifts that seem likely in the near future. In Web 1.0,…

  14. QUEST: An Assessment Tool for Web-Based Learning.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Choren, Ricardo; Blois, Marcelo; Fuks, Hugo

    In 1997, the Software Engineering Laboratory at Pontifical Catholic University of Rio de Janeiro (Brazil) implemented the first version of AulaNet (TM) a World Wide Web-based educational environment. Some of the teaching staff will use this environment in 1998 to offer regular term disciplines through the Web. This paper introduces Quest, a tool…

  15. EasyFRAP-web: a web-based tool for the analysis of fluorescence recovery after photobleaching data.

    PubMed

    Koulouras, Grigorios; Panagopoulos, Andreas; Rapsomaniki, Maria A; Giakoumakis, Nickolaos N; Taraviras, Stavros; Lygerou, Zoi

    2018-06-13

    Understanding protein dynamics is crucial in order to elucidate protein function and interactions. Advances in modern microscopy facilitate the exploration of the mobility of fluorescently tagged proteins within living cells. Fluorescence recovery after photobleaching (FRAP) is an increasingly popular functional live-cell imaging technique which enables the study of the dynamic properties of proteins at a single-cell level. As an increasing number of labs generate FRAP datasets, there is a need for fast, interactive and user-friendly applications that analyze the resulting data. Here we present easyFRAP-web, a web application that simplifies the qualitative and quantitative analysis of FRAP datasets. EasyFRAP-web permits quick analysis of FRAP datasets through an intuitive web interface with interconnected analysis steps (experimental data assessment, different types of normalization and estimation of curve-derived quantitative parameters). In addition, easyFRAP-web provides dynamic and interactive data visualization and data and figure export for further analysis after every step. We test easyFRAP-web by analyzing FRAP datasets capturing the mobility of the cell cycle regulator Cdt2 in the presence and absence of DNA damage in cultured cells. We show that easyFRAP-web yields results consistent with previous studies and highlights cell-to-cell heterogeneity in the estimated kinetic parameters. EasyFRAP-web is platform-independent and is freely accessible at: https://easyfrap.vmnet.upatras.gr/.

  16. Science on the Web: Web Activities Using Scientific Data.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Poppe, Barbara; McAlister, Deborah; Richardson, Lisa

    This guide is intended to help teachers learn about using special software tools for the World Wide Web. It makes use of the scientific data produced by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and other government agencies. Activities in this booklet include: (1) "Finding People in Cyberspace"; (2) "Finding Science on the Web";…

  17. A Web-Based Operating Room Management Educational Tool.

    PubMed

    Tsai, Mitchell H; Haddad, Daniel J; Friend, Alexander F; Bender, S Patrick; Davidson, Melissa L

    2016-08-01

    In 2010, our department instituted a nonclinical, administrative rotation in operating room management for anesthesiology residents. Subsequently, we mandated the rotation for all senior anesthesiology residents in 2013. In 2014, under the auspices of the American Society of Anesthesiologists, we developed a web-based module covering the basics of finance, accounting, and operating room management. A multiple-choice test was given to residents at the beginning and end of the rotation, and we compared the mean scores between residents who took the traditional course and residents who took the web-based module. We found no significant difference between the groups of residents, suggesting that the web-based module is as effective as traditional didactics.

  18. Approximating the Practice of Mathematics Teaching: What Learning Can Web-Based, Multimedia Storyboarding Software Enable?

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Herbst, Patricio; Chieu, Vu-Minh; Rougée, Annick

    2014-01-01

    This paper builds on Grossman's notion of approximations of practice as scaled-down opportunities for preservice teachers to learn to teach by doing. The authors propose the use of media rich, collaborative web-authoring tools for preservice teachers to create, complete, or edit scenarios in which they practice particular activities of teaching,…

  19. WASP: a Web-based Allele-Specific PCR assay designing tool for detecting SNPs and mutations

    PubMed Central

    Wangkumhang, Pongsakorn; Chaichoompu, Kridsadakorn; Ngamphiw, Chumpol; Ruangrit, Uttapong; Chanprasert, Juntima; Assawamakin, Anunchai; Tongsima, Sissades

    2007-01-01

    Background Allele-specific (AS) Polymerase Chain Reaction is a convenient and inexpensive method for genotyping Single Nucleotide Polymorphisms (SNPs) and mutations. It is applied in many recent studies including population genetics, molecular genetics and pharmacogenomics. Using known AS primer design tools to create primers leads to cumbersome process to inexperience users since information about SNP/mutation must be acquired from public databases prior to the design. Furthermore, most of these tools do not offer the mismatch enhancement to designed primers. The available web applications do not provide user-friendly graphical input interface and intuitive visualization of their primer results. Results This work presents a web-based AS primer design application called WASP. This tool can efficiently design AS primers for human SNPs as well as mutations. To assist scientists with collecting necessary information about target polymorphisms, this tool provides a local SNP database containing over 10 million SNPs of various populations from public domain databases, namely NCBI dbSNP, HapMap and JSNP respectively. This database is tightly integrated with the tool so that users can perform the design for existing SNPs without going off the site. To guarantee specificity of AS primers, the proposed system incorporates a primer specificity enhancement technique widely used in experiment protocol. In particular, WASP makes use of different destabilizing effects by introducing one deliberate 'mismatch' at the penultimate (second to last of the 3'-end) base of AS primers to improve the resulting AS primers. Furthermore, WASP offers graphical user interface through scalable vector graphic (SVG) draw that allow users to select SNPs and graphically visualize designed primers and their conditions. Conclusion WASP offers a tool for designing AS primers for both SNPs and mutations. By integrating the database for known SNPs (using gene ID or rs number), this tool facilitates the

  20. Web-based monitoring tools for Resistive Plate Chambers in the CMS experiment at CERN

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kim, M. S.; Ban, Y.; Cai, J.; Li, Q.; Liu, S.; Qian, S.; Wang, D.; Xu, Z.; Zhang, F.; Choi, Y.; Kim, D.; Goh, J.; Choi, S.; Hong, B.; Kang, J. W.; Kang, M.; Kwon, J. H.; Lee, K. S.; Lee, S. K.; Park, S. K.; Pant, L. M.; Mohanty, A. K.; Chudasama, R.; Singh, J. B.; Bhatnagar, V.; Mehta, A.; Kumar, R.; Cauwenbergh, S.; Costantini, S.; Cimmino, A.; Crucy, S.; Fagot, A.; Garcia, G.; Ocampo, A.; Poyraz, D.; Salva, S.; Thyssen, F.; Tytgat, M.; Zaganidis, N.; Doninck, W. V.; Cabrera, A.; Chaparro, L.; Gomez, J. P.; Gomez, B.; Sanabria, J. C.; Avila, C.; Ahmad, A.; Muhammad, S.; Shoaib, M.; Hoorani, H.; Awan, I.; Ali, I.; Ahmed, W.; Asghar, M. I.; Shahzad, H.; Sayed, A.; Ibrahim, A.; Aly, S.; Assran, Y.; Radi, A.; Elkafrawy, T.; Sharma, A.; Colafranceschi, S.; Abbrescia, M.; Calabria, C.; Colaleo, A.; Iaselli, G.; Loddo, F.; Maggi, M.; Nuzzo, S.; Pugliese, G.; Radogna, R.; Venditti, R.; Verwilligen, P.; Benussi, L.; Bianco, S.; Piccolo, D.; Paolucci, P.; Buontempo, S.; Cavallo, N.; Merola, M.; Fabozzi, F.; Iorio, O. M.; Braghieri, A.; Montagna, P.; Riccardi, C.; Salvini, P.; Vitulo, P.; Vai, I.; Magnani, A.; Dimitrov, A.; Litov, L.; Pavlov, B.; Petkov, P.; Aleksandrov, A.; Genchev, V.; Iaydjiev, P.; Rodozov, M.; Sultanov, G.; Vutova, M.; Stoykova, S.; Hadjiiska, R.; Ibargüen, H. S.; Morales, M. I. P.; Bernardino, S. C.; Bagaturia, I.; Tsamalaidze, Z.; Crotty, I.

    2014-10-01

    The Resistive Plate Chambers (RPC) are used in the CMS experiment at the trigger level and also in the standard offline muon reconstruction. In order to guarantee the quality of the data collected and to monitor online the detector performance, a set of tools has been developed in CMS which is heavily used in the RPC system. The Web-based monitoring (WBM) is a set of java servlets that allows users to check the performance of the hardware during data taking, providing distributions and history plots of all the parameters. The functionalities of the RPC WBM monitoring tools are presented along with studies of the detector performance as a function of growing luminosity and environmental conditions that are tracked over time.

  1. Fostering Counseling Students' Career Information Literacy through a Comprehensive Career Web Site

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Zalaquett, Carlos P.; Osborn, Debra S.

    2007-01-01

    Counseling students need to become knowledgeable about existing online career development tools to provide effective career development services today. The authors describe the characteristics of a Web site developed to foster career information literacy among students taking graduate career courses and examine its academic usefulness. Student…

  2. Work of the Web Weavers: Web Development in Academic Libraries

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Bundza, Maira; Vander Meer, Patricia Fravel; Perez-Stable, Maria A.

    2009-01-01

    Although the library's Web site has become a standard tool for seeking information and conducting research in academic institutions, there are a variety of ways libraries approach the often challenging--and sometimes daunting--process of Web site development and maintenance. Three librarians at Western Michigan University explored issues related…

  3. Analysis of Utility and Use of a Web-Based Tool for Digital Signal Processing Teaching by Means of a Technological Acceptance Model

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Toral, S. L.; Barrero, F.; Martinez-Torres, M. R.

    2007-01-01

    This paper presents an exploratory study about the development of a structural and measurement model for the technological acceptance (TAM) of a web-based educational tool. The aim consists of measuring not only the use of this tool, but also the external variables with a significant influence in its use for planning future improvements. The tool,…

  4. Randomized Comparison of Mobile and Web-Tools to Provide Dementia Risk Reduction Education: Use, Engagement and Participant Satisfaction

    PubMed Central

    O'Connor, Elodie; Hatherly, Chris

    2014-01-01

    Background Encouraging middle-aged adults to maintain their physical and cognitive health may have a significant impact on reducing the prevalence of dementia in the future. Mobile phone apps and interactive websites may be one effective way to target this age group. However, to date there has been little research investigating the user experience of dementia risk reduction tools delivered in this way. Objective The aim of this study was to explore participant engagement and evaluations of three different targeted smartphone and Web-based dementia risk reduction tools following a four-week intervention. Methods Participants completed a Web-based screening questionnaire to collect eligibility information. Eligible participants were asked to complete a Web-based baseline questionnaire and were then randomly assigned to use one of the three dementia risk reduction tools for a period of four weeks: (1) a mobile phone application; (2) an information-based website; and (3) an interactive website. User evaluations were obtained via a Web-based follow-up questionnaire after completion of the intervention. Results Of 415 eligible participants, 370 (89.16%) completed the baseline questionnaire and were assigned to an intervention group; 200 (54.05%) completed the post-intervention questionnaire. The average age of participants was 52 years, and 149 (75%) were female. Findings indicated that participants from all three intervention groups reported a generally positive impression of the tools across a range of domains. Participants using the information-based website reported higher ratings of their overall impression of the tool, F2,191=4.12, P=.02; how interesting the information was, F2,189=3.53, P=.03; how helpful the information was, F2,192=4.15, P=.02; and how much they learned, F2,188=3.86, P=.02. Group differences were significant between the mobile phone app and information-based website users, but not between the interactive website users and the other two groups

  5. Randomized Comparison of Mobile and Web-Tools to Provide Dementia Risk Reduction Education: Use, Engagement and Participant Satisfaction.

    PubMed

    O'Connor, Elodie; Farrow, Maree; Hatherly, Chris

    2014-01-01

    Encouraging middle-aged adults to maintain their physical and cognitive health may have a significant impact on reducing the prevalence of dementia in the future. Mobile phone apps and interactive websites may be one effective way to target this age group. However, to date there has been little research investigating the user experience of dementia risk reduction tools delivered in this way. The aim of this study was to explore participant engagement and evaluations of three different targeted smartphone and Web-based dementia risk reduction tools following a four-week intervention. Participants completed a Web-based screening questionnaire to collect eligibility information. Eligible participants were asked to complete a Web-based baseline questionnaire and were then randomly assigned to use one of the three dementia risk reduction tools for a period of four weeks: (1) a mobile phone application; (2) an information-based website; and (3) an interactive website. User evaluations were obtained via a Web-based follow-up questionnaire after completion of the intervention. Of 415 eligible participants, 370 (89.16%) completed the baseline questionnaire and were assigned to an intervention group; 200 (54.05%) completed the post-intervention questionnaire. The average age of participants was 52 years, and 149 (75%) were female. Findings indicated that participants from all three intervention groups reported a generally positive impression of the tools across a range of domains. Participants using the information-based website reported higher ratings of their overall impression of the tool, F2,191=4.12, P=.02; how interesting the information was, F2,189=3.53, P=.03; how helpful the information was, F2,192=4.15, P=.02; and how much they learned, F2,188=3.86, P=.02. Group differences were significant between the mobile phone app and information-based website users, but not between the interactive website users and the other two groups. Additionally, participants using the

  6. dbHiMo: a web-based epigenomics platform for histone-modifying enzymes.

    PubMed

    Choi, Jaeyoung; Kim, Ki-Tae; Huh, Aram; Kwon, Seomun; Hong, Changyoung; Asiegbu, Fred O; Jeon, Junhyun; Lee, Yong-Hwan

    2015-01-01

    Over the past two decades, epigenetics has evolved into a key concept for understanding regulation of gene expression. Among many epigenetic mechanisms, covalent modifications such as acetylation and methylation of lysine residues on core histones emerged as a major mechanism in epigenetic regulation. Here, we present the database for histone-modifying enzymes (dbHiMo; http://hme.riceblast.snu.ac.kr/) aimed at facilitating functional and comparative analysis of histone-modifying enzymes (HMEs). HMEs were identified by applying a search pipeline built upon profile hidden Markov model (HMM) to proteomes. The database incorporates 11,576 HMEs identified from 603 proteomes including 483 fungal, 32 plants and 51 metazoan species. The dbHiMo provides users with web-based personalized data browsing and analysis tools, supporting comparative and evolutionary genomics. With comprehensive data entries and associated web-based tools, our database will be a valuable resource for future epigenetics/epigenomics studies. © The Author(s) 2015. Published by Oxford University Press.

  7. Web-Enabled Mechanistic Case Diagramming: A Novel Tool for Assessing Students' Ability to Integrate Foundational and Clinical Sciences.

    PubMed

    Ferguson, Kristi J; Kreiter, Clarence D; Haugen, Thomas H; Dee, Fred R

    2018-02-20

    As medical schools move from discipline-based courses to more integrated approaches, identifying assessment tools that parallel this change is an important goal. The authors describe the use of test item statistics to assess the reliability and validity of web-enabled mechanistic case diagrams (MCDs) as a potential tool to assess students' ability to integrate basic science and clinical information. Students review a narrative clinical case and construct an MCD using items provided by the case author. Students identify the relationships among underlying risk factors, etiology, pathogenesis and pathophysiology, and the patients' signs and symptoms. They receive one point for each correctly-identified link. In 2014-15 and 2015-16, case diagrams were implemented in consecutive classes of 150 medical students. The alpha reliability coefficient for the overall score, constructed using each student's mean proportion correct across all cases, was 0.82. Discrimination indices for each of the case scores with the overall score ranged from 0.23 to 0.51. In a G study using those students with complete data (n = 251) on all 16 cases, 10% of the variance was true score variance, and systematic case variance was large. Using 16 cases generated a G coefficient (relative score reliability) equal to .72 and a Phi equal to .65. The next phase of the project will involve deploying MCDs in higher-stakes settings to determine whether similar results can be achieved. Further analyses will determine whether these assessments correlate with other measures of higher-order thinking skills.

  8. WaveNet: A Web-Based Metocean Data Access, Processing and Analysis Tool; Part 5 - WW3 Database

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2015-02-01

    Program ( CDIP ); and Part 4 for the Great Lakes Observing System/Coastal Forecasting System (GLOS/GLCFS). Using step-by-step instructions, this Part 5...Demirbilek, Z., L. Lin, and D. Wilson. 2014a. WaveNet: A web-based metocean data access, processing, and analysis tool; part 3– CDIP database

  9. Implementation of a scalable, web-based, automated clinical decision support risk-prediction tool for chronic kidney disease using C-CDA and application programming interfaces.

    PubMed

    Samal, Lipika; D'Amore, John D; Bates, David W; Wright, Adam

    2017-11-01

    Clinical decision support tools for risk prediction are readily available, but typically require workflow interruptions and manual data entry so are rarely used. Due to new data interoperability standards for electronic health records (EHRs), other options are available. As a clinical case study, we sought to build a scalable, web-based system that would automate calculation of kidney failure risk and display clinical decision support to users in primary care practices. We developed a single-page application, web server, database, and application programming interface to calculate and display kidney failure risk. Data were extracted from the EHR using the Consolidated Clinical Document Architecture interoperability standard for Continuity of Care Documents (CCDs). EHR users were presented with a noninterruptive alert on the patient's summary screen and a hyperlink to details and recommendations provided through a web application. Clinic schedules and CCDs were retrieved using existing application programming interfaces to the EHR, and we provided a clinical decision support hyperlink to the EHR as a service. We debugged a series of terminology and technical issues. The application was validated with data from 255 patients and subsequently deployed to 10 primary care clinics where, over the course of 1 year, 569 533 CCD documents were processed. We validated the use of interoperable documents and open-source components to develop a low-cost tool for automated clinical decision support. Since Consolidated Clinical Document Architecture-based data extraction extends to any certified EHR, this demonstrates a successful modular approach to clinical decision support. © The Author 2017. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the American Medical Informatics Association.

  10. Comparison of a Web-Based Teaching Tool and Traditional Didactic Learning for In Vitro Fertilization Patients: A Preliminary Randomized Controlled Trial.

    PubMed

    Vause, Tannys Dawn Reiko; Allison, David J; Vause, Tricia; Tekok-Kilic, Ayda; Ditor, David S; Min, Jason K

    2018-05-01

    The objective of this prospective RCT was to compare the efficacy of a web-based teaching tool to traditional didactic teaching in IVF patients. Forty women undergoing their first IVF cycle were randomly allocated to an interactive web-based teaching session or a nurse-led didactic teaching session. The primary outcome measure was participant knowledge regarding the IVF process, risks, and logistics assessed before and after the respective teaching session. Secondary outcomes included patient stress, assessed before and after the respective teaching session, and patient satisfaction, assessed following the respective teaching session and on the day of embryo transfer (following implementation of the teaching protocol). Both groups demonstrated similar and significant improvements in knowledge and stress after exposure to their respective teaching sessions. The web-based group was significantly more satisfied than the didactic teaching group. Web-based teaching was also shown to be equally effective for participants of high versus low income and education status for knowledge, stress, and satisfaction. This study provides preliminary support for the use of web-based teaching as an equally effective tool for increasing knowledge and reducing stress compared to traditional didactic teaching in IVF patients, with the added benefit of increased patient satisfaction. Copyright © 2018 Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists of Canada. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  11. Analysis of Pharmacy Student Perceptions and Attitudes Toward Web 2.0 Tools for Educational Purposes

    PubMed Central

    Zhang, Yingzhi; Kim, Jessica; Awad, Nadia I.

    2015-01-01

    Background: The use of Wikis, blogs, and podcasts can engage students in collaborative learning, allow peer feedback, and enhance reflective learning. However, no survey to date has been performed across all professional years of pharmacy students in order to obtain a comprehensive overview of student perceptions. Objectives: To identify the familiarity of pharmacy students with Web 2.0 resources available for medical education, and what barriers exist. Methods: This study surveyed students enrolled in the professional program of a US-accredited pharmacy school to assess their knowledge and current use of available online resources and attitudes toward the use of Web 2.0 technologies for educational purposes. Results: Of the 836 surveys distributed, 293 were collected and analyzed (35.0% response rate). Students reported using the following Web 2.0 technologies in the didactic and experiential settings, respectively: Wikipedia (88%, 70%), YouTube (87%, 41%), Khan Academy (40%, 5%), and medical or scientific blogs (25%, 38%). Although these technologies were more commonly used in the classroom, students agreed or strongly agreed such resources should be used more often in both the didactic (n = 187, 64%) and experiential settings (n = 172, 59%). The barriers associated with the use of Web 2.0 in both the didactic and experiential settings that were ranked highest among students included accuracy and quality of information and lack of familiarity among faculty members and preceptors. Conclusion: Pharmacy students across all professional years actively use Web 2.0 tools for educational purposes and believe that opportunities exist to expand use of such technologies within the didactic and experiential settings.

  12. Web-based tool for visualization of electric field distribution in deep-seated body structures and planning of electroporation-based treatments

    PubMed Central

    2015-01-01

    Background Treatments based on electroporation are a new and promising approach to treating tumors, especially non-resectable ones. The success of the treatment is, however, heavily dependent on coverage of the entire tumor volume with a sufficiently high electric field. Ensuring complete coverage in the case of deep-seated tumors is not trivial and can in best way be ensured by patient-specific treatment planning. The basis of the treatment planning process consists of two complex tasks: medical image segmentation, and numerical modeling and optimization. Methods In addition to previously developed segmentation algorithms for several tissues (human liver, hepatic vessels, bone tissue and canine brain) and the algorithms for numerical modeling and optimization of treatment parameters, we developed a web-based tool to facilitate the translation of the algorithms and their application in the clinic. The developed web-based tool automatically builds a 3D model of the target tissue from the medical images uploaded by the user and then uses this 3D model to optimize treatment parameters. The tool enables the user to validate the results of the automatic segmentation and make corrections if necessary before delivering the final treatment plan. Results Evaluation of the tool was performed by five independent experts from four different institutions. During the evaluation, we gathered data concerning user experience and measured performance times for different components of the tool. Both user reports and performance times show significant reduction in treatment-planning complexity and time-consumption from 1-2 days to a few hours. Conclusions The presented web-based tool is intended to facilitate the treatment planning process and reduce the time needed for it. It is crucial for facilitating expansion of electroporation-based treatments in the clinic and ensuring reliable treatment for the patients. The additional value of the tool is the possibility of easy upgrade and

  13. WebSat ‐ A web software for microsatellite marker development

    PubMed Central

    Martins, Wellington Santos; Soares Lucas, Divino César; de Souza Neves, Kelligton Fabricio; Bertioli, David John

    2009-01-01

    Simple sequence repeats (SSR), also known as microsatellites, have been extensively used as molecular markers due to their abundance and high degree of polymorphism. We have developed a simple to use web software, called WebSat, for microsatellite molecular marker prediction and development. WebSat is accessible through the Internet, requiring no program installation. Although a web solution, it makes use of Ajax techniques, providing a rich, responsive user interface. WebSat allows the submission of sequences, visualization of microsatellites and the design of primers suitable for their amplification. The program allows full control of parameters and the easy export of the resulting data, thus facilitating the development of microsatellite markers. Availability The web tool may be accessed at http://purl.oclc.org/NET/websat/ PMID:19255650

  14. Gee Fu: a sequence version and web-services database tool for genomic assembly, genome feature and NGS data.

    PubMed

    Ramirez-Gonzalez, Ricardo; Caccamo, Mario; MacLean, Daniel

    2011-10-01

    Scientists now use high-throughput sequencing technologies and short-read assembly methods to create draft genome assemblies in just days. Tools and pipelines like the assembler, and the workflow management environments make it easy for a non-specialist to implement complicated pipelines to produce genome assemblies and annotations very quickly. Such accessibility results in a proliferation of assemblies and associated files, often for many organisms. These assemblies get used as a working reference by lots of different workers, from a bioinformatician doing gene prediction or a bench scientist designing primers for PCR. Here we describe Gee Fu, a database tool for genomic assembly and feature data, including next-generation sequence alignments. Gee Fu is an instance of a Ruby-On-Rails web application on a feature database that provides web and console interfaces for input, visualization of feature data via AnnoJ, access to data through a web-service interface, an API for direct data access by Ruby scripts and access to feature data stored in BAM files. Gee Fu provides a platform for storing and sharing different versions of an assembly and associated features that can be accessed and updated by bench biologists and bioinformaticians in ways that are easy and useful for each. http://tinyurl.com/geefu dan.maclean@tsl.ac.uk.

  15. The PartnerWeb Project: a component-based approach to enterprise-wide information integration and dissemination.

    PubMed Central

    Karson, T. H.; Perkins, C.; Dixon, C.; Ehresman, J. P.; Mammone, G. L.; Sato, L.; Schaffer, J. L.; Greenes, R. A.

    1997-01-01

    A component-based health information resource, delivered on an intranet and the Internet, utilizing World Wide Web (WWW) technology, has been built to meet the needs of a large integrated delivery network (IDN). Called PartnerWeb, this resource is intended to provide a variety of health care and reference information to both practitioners and consumers/patients. The initial target audience has been providers. Content management for the numerous departments, divisions, and other organizational entities within the IDN is accomplished by a distributed authoring and editing environment. Structured entry using a set of form tools into databases facilitates consistency of information presentation, while empowering designated authors and editors in the various entities to be responsible for their own materials, but not requiring them to be technically skilled. Each form tool manages an encapsulated component. The output of each component can be a dynamically generated display on WWW platforms, or an appropriate interface to other presentation environments. The PartnerWeb project lays the foundation for both an internal and external communication infrastructure for the enterprise that can facilitate information dissemination. PMID:9357648

  16. An Investigation of the Factors That Influence Preservice Teachers' Intentions and Integration of Web 2.0 Tools

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Sadaf, Ayesha; Newby, Timothy J.; Ertmer, Peggy A.

    2016-01-01

    The purpose of the study was to investigate factors that predict preservice teachers' intentions and actual uses of Web 2.0 tools in their classrooms. A two-phase, mixed method, sequential explanatory design was used. The first phase explored factors, based on the decomposed theory of planned behavior, that predict preservice teachers' intentions…

  17. SMARTe: A FREE Web-Based Tool To Help Communities Overcome Revitalization Obstacles - Detroit, MI, May 6, 2008

    EPA Science Inventory

    SMARTe (Sustainable Management Approaches and Revitalization Tools - electronic) is a web-based decision support tool being developed by the Office of Research and Development (ORD) in partnership with the Office of Brownfields and Land R...

  18. SIMBA: a web tool for managing bacterial genome assembly generated by Ion PGM sequencing technology.

    PubMed

    Mariano, Diego C B; Pereira, Felipe L; Aguiar, Edgar L; Oliveira, Letícia C; Benevides, Leandro; Guimarães, Luís C; Folador, Edson L; Sousa, Thiago J; Ghosh, Preetam; Barh, Debmalya; Figueiredo, Henrique C P; Silva, Artur; Ramos, Rommel T J; Azevedo, Vasco A C

    2016-12-15

    The evolution of Next-Generation Sequencing (NGS) has considerably reduced the cost per sequenced-base, allowing a significant rise of sequencing projects, mainly in prokaryotes. However, the range of available NGS platforms requires different strategies and software to correctly assemble genomes. Different strategies are necessary to properly complete an assembly project, in addition to the installation or modification of various software. This requires users to have significant expertise in these software and command line scripting experience on Unix platforms, besides possessing the basic expertise on methodologies and techniques for genome assembly. These difficulties often delay the complete genome assembly projects. In order to overcome this, we developed SIMBA (SImple Manager for Bacterial Assemblies), a freely available web tool that integrates several component tools for assembling and finishing bacterial genomes. SIMBA provides a friendly and intuitive user interface so bioinformaticians, even with low computational expertise, can work under a centralized administrative control system of assemblies managed by the assembly center head. SIMBA guides the users to execute assembly process through simple and interactive pages. SIMBA workflow was divided in three modules: (i) projects: allows a general vision of genome sequencing projects, in addition to data quality analysis and data format conversions; (ii) assemblies: allows de novo assemblies with the software Mira, Minia, Newbler and SPAdes, also assembly quality validations using QUAST software; and (iii) curation: presents methods to finishing assemblies through tools for scaffolding contigs and close gaps. We also presented a case study that validated the efficacy of SIMBA to manage bacterial assemblies projects sequenced using Ion Torrent PGM. Besides to be a web tool for genome assembly, SIMBA is a complete genome assemblies project management system, which can be useful for managing of several

  19. Going, Going, Still There: Using the WebCite Service to Permanently Archive Cited Web Pages

    PubMed Central

    Trudel, Mathieu

    2005-01-01

    Scholars are increasingly citing electronic “web references” which are not preserved in libraries or full text archives. WebCite is a new standard for citing web references. To “webcite” a document involves archiving the cited Web page through www.webcitation.org and citing the WebCite permalink instead of (or in addition to) the unstable live Web page. This journal has amended its “instructions for authors” accordingly, asking authors to archive cited Web pages before submitting a manuscript. Almost 200 other journals are already using the system. We discuss the rationale for WebCite, its technology, and how scholars, editors, and publishers can benefit from the service. Citing scholars initiate an archiving process of all cited Web references, ideally before they submit a manuscript. Authors of online documents and websites which are expected to be cited by others can ensure that their work is permanently available by creating an archived copy using WebCite and providing the citation information including the WebCite link on their Web document(s). Editors should ask their authors to cache all cited Web addresses (Uniform Resource Locators, or URLs) “prospectively” before submitting their manuscripts to their journal. Editors and publishers should also instruct their copyeditors to cache cited Web material if the author has not done so already. Finally, WebCite can process publisher submitted “citing articles” (submitted for example as eXtensible Markup Language [XML] documents) to automatically archive all cited Web pages shortly before or on publication. Finally, WebCite can act as a focussed crawler, caching retrospectively references of already published articles. Copyright issues are addressed by honouring respective Internet standards (robot exclusion files, no-cache and no-archive tags). Long-term preservation is ensured by agreements with libraries and digital preservation organizations. The resulting WebCite Index may also have

  20. Parameter selection for and implementation of a web-based decision-support tool to predict extubation outcome in premature infants.

    PubMed

    Mueller, Martina; Wagner, Carol L; Annibale, David J; Knapp, Rebecca G; Hulsey, Thomas C; Almeida, Jonas S

    2006-03-01

    Approximately 30% of intubated preterm infants with respiratory distress syndrome (RDS) will fail attempted extubation, requiring reintubation and mechanical ventilation. Although ventilator technology and monitoring of premature infants have improved over time, optimal extubation remains challenging. Furthermore, extubation decisions for premature infants require complex informational processing, techniques implicitly learned through clinical practice. Computer-aided decision-support tools would benefit inexperienced clinicians, especially during peak neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) census. A five-step procedure was developed to identify predictive variables. Clinical expert (CE) thought processes comprised one model. Variables from that model were used to develop two mathematical models for the decision-support tool: an artificial neural network (ANN) and a multivariate logistic regression model (MLR). The ranking of the variables in the three models was compared using the Wilcoxon Signed Rank Test. The best performing model was used in a web-based decision-support tool with a user interface implemented in Hypertext Markup Language (HTML) and the mathematical model employing the ANN. CEs identified 51 potentially predictive variables for extubation decisions for an infant on mechanical ventilation. Comparisons of the three models showed a significant difference between the ANN and the CE (p = 0.0006). Of the original 51 potentially predictive variables, the 13 most predictive variables were used to develop an ANN as a web-based decision-tool. The ANN processes user-provided data and returns the prediction 0-1 score and a novelty index. The user then selects the most appropriate threshold for categorizing the prediction as a success or failure. Furthermore, the novelty index, indicating the similarity of the test case to the training case, allows the user to assess the confidence level of the prediction with regard to how much the new data differ from the data

  1. C-SPADE: a web-tool for interactive analysis and visualization of drug screening experiments through compound-specific bioactivity dendrograms

    PubMed Central

    Alam, Zaid; Peddinti, Gopal

    2017-01-01

    Abstract The advent of polypharmacology paradigm in drug discovery calls for novel chemoinformatic tools for analyzing compounds’ multi-targeting activities. Such tools should provide an intuitive representation of the chemical space through capturing and visualizing underlying patterns of compound similarities linked to their polypharmacological effects. Most of the existing compound-centric chemoinformatics tools lack interactive options and user interfaces that are critical for the real-time needs of chemical biologists carrying out compound screening experiments. Toward that end, we introduce C-SPADE, an open-source exploratory web-tool for interactive analysis and visualization of drug profiling assays (biochemical, cell-based or cell-free) using compound-centric similarity clustering. C-SPADE allows the users to visually map the chemical diversity of a screening panel, explore investigational compounds in terms of their similarity to the screening panel, perform polypharmacological analyses and guide drug-target interaction predictions. C-SPADE requires only the raw drug profiling data as input, and it automatically retrieves the structural information and constructs the compound clusters in real-time, thereby reducing the time required for manual analysis in drug development or repurposing applications. The web-tool provides a customizable visual workspace that can either be downloaded as figure or Newick tree file or shared as a hyperlink with other users. C-SPADE is freely available at http://cspade.fimm.fi/. PMID:28472495

  2. Contributions of Traditional Web 1.0 Tools e.g. Email and Web 2.0 Tools e.g. Weblog towards Knowledge Management

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Dehinbo, Johnson

    2010-01-01

    The use of email utilizes the power of Web 1.0 to enable users to access their email from any computer and mobile devices that is connected to the Internet making email valuable in acquiring and transferring knowledge. But the advent of Web 2.0 and social networking seems to indicate certain limitations of email. The use of social networking seems…

  3. Web 2.0 applications in medicine: trends and topics in the literature.

    PubMed

    Boudry, Christophe

    2015-04-01

    The World Wide Web has changed research habits, and these changes were further expanded when "Web 2.0" became popular in 2005. Bibliometrics is a helpful tool used for describing patterns of publication, for interpreting progression over time, and the geographical distribution of research in a given field. Few studies employing bibliometrics, however, have been carried out on the correlative nature of scientific literature and Web 2.0. The aim of this bibliometric analysis was to provide an overview of Web 2.0 implications in the biomedical literature. The objectives were to assess the growth rate of literature, key journals, authors, and country contributions, and to evaluate whether the various Web 2.0 applications were expressed within this biomedical literature, and if so, how. A specific query with keywords chosen to be representative of Web 2.0 applications was built for the PubMed database. Articles related to Web 2.0 were downloaded in Extensible Markup Language (XML) and were processed through developed hypertext preprocessor (PHP) scripts, then imported to Microsoft Excel 2010 for data processing. A total of 1347 articles were included in this study. The number of articles related to Web 2.0 has been increasing from 2002 to 2012 (average annual growth rate was 106.3% with a maximum of 333% in 2005). The United States was by far the predominant country for authors, with 514 articles (54.0%; 514/952). The second and third most productive countries were the United Kingdom and Australia, with 87 (9.1%; 87/952) and 44 articles (4.6%; 44/952), respectively. Distribution of number of articles per author showed that the core population of researchers working on Web 2.0 in the medical field could be estimated at approximately 75. In total, 614 journals were identified during this analysis. Using Bradford's law, 27 core journals were identified, among which three (Studies in Health Technology and Informatics, Journal of Medical Internet Research, and Nucleic Acids

  4. Web-Based Architecture to Enable Compute-Intensive CAD Tools and Multi-user Synchronization in Teleradiology

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Mehta, Neville; Kompalli, Suryaprakash; Chaudhary, Vipin

    Teleradiology is the electronic transmission of radiological patient images, such as x-rays, CT, or MR across multiple locations. The goal could be interpretation, consultation, or medical records keeping. Information technology solutions have enabled electronic records and their associated benefits are evident in health care today. However, salient aspects of collaborative interfaces, and computer assisted diagnostic (CAD) tools are yet to be integrated into workflow designs. The Computer Assisted Diagnostics and Interventions (CADI) group at the University at Buffalo has developed an architecture that facilitates web-enabled use of CAD tools, along with the novel concept of synchronized collaboration. The architecture can support multiple teleradiology applications and case studies are presented here.

  5. Chapter 18: Web-based Tools - NED VO Services

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Mazzarella, J. M.; NED Team

    -wavelength extragalactic data such as positions, redshifts, photometry and spectral energy distributions (SEDs), and sizes (all with references and uncertainties when available). Section 3 summarizes the advantages of accessing the NED "name resolver" and other NED services via the web to replace the legacy "server mode" custom data structure previously available through a function library provided only in the C programming language. Section 4 illustrates visualization via VOPlot of an SED and the spatial distribution of sources from a NED All-Sky (By Parameters) query. Section 5 describes the new NED Spectral Archive, illustrating how VOTables are being used to standardize the data and metadata as well as the physical units of spectra made available by authors of journal articles and producers of major survey archives; quick-look spectral analysis through convenient interoperability with the SpecView (STScI) Java applet is also shown. Section 6 closes with a summary of the capabilities described herein, which greatly simplify interoperability of NED with other components of the VO, enabling new opportunities for discovery, visualization, and analysis of multiwavelength data.

  6. Web services in the U.S. geological survey streamstats web application

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Guthrie, J.D.; Dartiguenave, C.; Ries, Kernell G.

    2009-01-01

    StreamStats is a U.S. Geological Survey Web-based GIS application developed as a tool for waterresources planning and management, engineering design, and other applications. StreamStats' primary functionality allows users to obtain drainage-basin boundaries, basin characteristics, and streamflow statistics for gaged and ungaged sites. Recently, Web services have been developed that provide the capability to remote users and applications to access comprehensive GIS tools that are available in StreamStats, including delineating drainage-basin boundaries, computing basin characteristics, estimating streamflow statistics for user-selected locations, and determining point features that coincide with a National Hydrography Dataset (NHD) reach address. For the state of Kentucky, a web service also has been developed that provides users the ability to estimate daily time series of drainage-basin average values of daily precipitation and temperature. The use of web services allows the user to take full advantage of the datasets and processes behind the Stream Stats application without having to develop and maintain them. ?? 2009 IEEE.

  7. Genome Calligrapher: A Web Tool for Refactoring Bacterial Genome Sequences for de Novo DNA Synthesis.

    PubMed

    Christen, Matthias; Deutsch, Samuel; Christen, Beat

    2015-08-21

    Recent advances in synthetic biology have resulted in an increasing demand for the de novo synthesis of large-scale DNA constructs. Any process improvement that enables fast and cost-effective streamlining of digitized genetic information into fabricable DNA sequences holds great promise to study, mine, and engineer genomes. Here, we present Genome Calligrapher, a computer-aided design web tool intended for whole genome refactoring of bacterial chromosomes for de novo DNA synthesis. By applying a neutral recoding algorithm, Genome Calligrapher optimizes GC content and removes obstructive DNA features known to interfere with the synthesis of double-stranded DNA and the higher order assembly into large DNA constructs. Subsequent bioinformatics analysis revealed that synthesis constraints are prevalent among bacterial genomes. However, a low level of codon replacement is sufficient for refactoring bacterial genomes into easy-to-synthesize DNA sequences. To test the algorithm, 168 kb of synthetic DNA comprising approximately 20 percent of the synthetic essential genome of the cell-cycle bacterium Caulobacter crescentus was streamlined and then ordered from a commercial supplier of low-cost de novo DNA synthesis. The successful assembly into eight 20 kb segments indicates that Genome Calligrapher algorithm can be efficiently used to refactor difficult-to-synthesize DNA. Genome Calligrapher is broadly applicable to recode biosynthetic pathways, DNA sequences, and whole bacterial genomes, thus offering new opportunities to use synthetic biology tools to explore the functionality of microbial diversity. The Genome Calligrapher web tool can be accessed at https://christenlab.ethz.ch/GenomeCalligrapher  .

  8. The neXtProt peptide uniqueness checker: a tool for the proteomics community.

    PubMed

    Schaeffer, Mathieu; Gateau, Alain; Teixeira, Daniel; Michel, Pierre-André; Zahn-Zabal, Monique; Lane, Lydie

    2017-11-01

    The neXtProt peptide uniqueness checker allows scientists to define which peptides can be used to validate the existence of human proteins, i.e. map uniquely versus multiply to human protein sequences taking into account isobaric substitutions, alternative splicing and single amino acid variants. The pepx program is available at https://github.com/calipho-sib/pepx and can be launched from the command line or through a cgi web interface. Indexing requires a sequence file in FASTA format. The peptide uniqueness checker tool is freely available on the web at https://www.nextprot.org/tools/peptide-uniqueness-checker and from the neXtProt API at https://api.nextprot.org/. lydie.lane@sib.swiss. © The Author(s) 2017. Published by Oxford University Press.

  9. Web-based Tools for Educators: Outreach Activities of the Polar Radar for Ice Sheet Measurements (PRISM) Project

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Braaten, D. A.; Holvoet, J. F.; Gogineni, S.

    2003-12-01

    The Radar Systems and Remote Sensing Laboratory at the University of Kansas (KU) has implemented extensive outreach activities focusing on Polar Regions as part of the Polar Radar for Ice Sheet Measurements (PRISM) project. The PRISM project is developing advanced intelligent remote sensing technology that involves radar systems, an autonomous rover, and communications systems to measure detailed ice sheet characteristics, and to determine bed conditions (frozen or wet) below active ice sheets in both Greenland and Antarctica. These measurements will provide a better understanding of the response of polar ice sheets to global climate change and the resulting impact the ice sheets will have on sea level rise. Many of the research and technological development aspects of the PRISM project, such as robotics, radar systems, climate change and exploration of harsh environments, can kindle an excitement and interest in students about science and technology. These topics form the core of our K-12 education and training outreach initiatives, which are designed to capture the imagination of young students, and prompt them to consider an educational path that will lead them to scientific or engineering careers. The K-12 PRISM outreach initiatives are being developed and implemented in a collaboration with the Advanced Learning Technology Program (ALTec) of the High Plains Regional Technology in Education Consortium (HPR*TEC). ALTec is associated with the KU School of Education, and is a well-established educational research center that develops and hosts web tools to enable teachers nationwide to network, collaborate, and share resources with other teachers. An example of an innovative and successful web interface developed by ALTec is called TrackStar. Teachers can use TrackStar over the Web to develop interactive, resource-based lessons (called tracks) on-line for their students. Once developed, tracks are added to the TrackStar database and can be accessed and modified

  10. Network Computing Infrastructure to Share Tools and Data in Global Nuclear Energy Partnership

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kim, Guehee; Suzuki, Yoshio; Teshima, Naoya

    CCSE/JAEA (Center for Computational Science and e-Systems/Japan Atomic Energy Agency) integrated a prototype system of a network computing infrastructure for sharing tools and data to support the U.S. and Japan collaboration in GNEP (Global Nuclear Energy Partnership). We focused on three technical issues to apply our information process infrastructure, which are accessibility, security, and usability. In designing the prototype system, we integrated and improved both network and Web technologies. For the accessibility issue, we adopted SSL-VPN (Security Socket Layer-Virtual Private Network) technology for the access beyond firewalls. For the security issue, we developed an authentication gateway based on the PKI (Public Key Infrastructure) authentication mechanism to strengthen the security. Also, we set fine access control policy to shared tools and data and used shared key based encryption method to protect tools and data against leakage to third parties. For the usability issue, we chose Web browsers as user interface and developed Web application to provide functions to support sharing tools and data. By using WebDAV (Web-based Distributed Authoring and Versioning) function, users can manipulate shared tools and data through the Windows-like folder environment. We implemented the prototype system in Grid infrastructure for atomic energy research: AEGIS (Atomic Energy Grid Infrastructure) developed by CCSE/JAEA. The prototype system was applied for the trial use in the first period of GNEP.

  11. Teaching Tectonics to Undergraduates with Web GIS

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Anastasio, D. J.; Bodzin, A.; Sahagian, D. L.; Rutzmoser, S.

    2013-12-01

    Geospatial reasoning skills provide a means for manipulating, interpreting, and explaining structured information and are involved in higher-order cognitive processes that include problem solving and decision-making. Appropriately designed tools, technologies, and curriculum can support spatial learning. We present Web-based visualization and analysis tools developed with Javascript APIs to enhance tectonic curricula while promoting geospatial thinking and scientific inquiry. The Web GIS interface integrates graphics, multimedia, and animations that allow users to explore and discover geospatial patterns that are not easily recognized. Features include a swipe tool that enables users to see underneath layers, query tools useful in exploration of earthquake and volcano data sets, a subduction and elevation profile tool which facilitates visualization between map and cross-sectional views, drafting tools, a location function, and interactive image dragging functionality on the Web GIS. The Web GIS platform is independent and can be implemented on tablets or computers. The GIS tool set enables learners to view, manipulate, and analyze rich data sets from local to global scales, including such data as geology, population, heat flow, land cover, seismic hazards, fault zones, continental boundaries, and elevation using two- and three- dimensional visualization and analytical software. Coverages which allow users to explore plate boundaries and global heat flow processes aided learning in a Lehigh University Earth and environmental science Structural Geology and Tectonics class and are freely available on the Web.

  12. GDA, a web-based tool for Genomics and Drugs integrated analysis.

    PubMed

    Caroli, Jimmy; Sorrentino, Giovanni; Forcato, Mattia; Del Sal, Giannino; Bicciato, Silvio

    2018-05-25

    Several major screenings of genetic profiling and drug testing in cancer cell lines proved that the integration of genomic portraits and compound activities is effective in discovering new genetic markers of drug sensitivity and clinically relevant anticancer compounds. Despite most genetic and drug response data are publicly available, the availability of user-friendly tools for their integrative analysis remains limited, thus hampering an effective exploitation of this information. Here, we present GDA, a web-based tool for Genomics and Drugs integrated Analysis that combines drug response data for >50 800 compounds with mutations and gene expression profiles across 73 cancer cell lines. Genomic and pharmacological data are integrated through a modular architecture that allows users to identify compounds active towards cancer cell lines bearing a specific genomic background and, conversely, the mutational or transcriptional status of cells responding or not-responding to a specific compound. Results are presented through intuitive graphical representations and supplemented with information obtained from public repositories. As both personalized targeted therapies and drug-repurposing are gaining increasing attention, GDA represents a resource to formulate hypotheses on the interplay between genomic traits and drug response in cancer. GDA is freely available at http://gda.unimore.it/.

  13. Generation Y, Learner Autonomy and the Potential of Web 2.0 Tools for Language Learning and Teaching

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Morgan, Liam

    2012-01-01

    Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to examine the relationship between the development of learner autonomy and the application of Web 2.0 tools in the language classroom. Design/methodology/approach: The approach taken is that of qualitative action research within an explicit theoretical framework and the data were collected via surveys and…

  14. Copying Right and Copying Wrong with Web 2.0 Tools in the Teacher Education and Communications Classrooms

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    McGrail, Ewa; McGrail, J. Patrick

    2010-01-01

    Understanding the tenets of copyright in general, and in particular, in online communication and publishing with Web 2.0 tools, has become an important part of literacy in today's Information Age, as well as a cornerstone of free speech and responsible citizenship for the future. Young content creators must be educated about copyright law, their…

  15. PanWeb: A web interface for pan-genomic analysis.

    PubMed

    Pantoja, Yan; Pinheiro, Kenny; Veras, Allan; Araújo, Fabrício; Lopes de Sousa, Ailton; Guimarães, Luis Carlos; Silva, Artur; Ramos, Rommel T J

    2017-01-01

    With increased production of genomic data since the advent of next-generation sequencing (NGS), there has been a need to develop new bioinformatics tools and areas, such as comparative genomics. In comparative genomics, the genetic material of an organism is directly compared to that of another organism to better understand biological species. Moreover, the exponentially growing number of deposited prokaryote genomes has enabled the investigation of several genomic characteristics that are intrinsic to certain species. Thus, a new approach to comparative genomics, termed pan-genomics, was developed. In pan-genomics, various organisms of the same species or genus are compared. Currently, there are many tools that can perform pan-genomic analyses, such as PGAP (Pan-Genome Analysis Pipeline), Panseq (Pan-Genome Sequence Analysis Program) and PGAT (Prokaryotic Genome Analysis Tool). Among these software tools, PGAP was developed in the Perl scripting language and its reliance on UNIX platform terminals and its requirement for an extensive parameterized command line can become a problem for users without previous computational knowledge. Thus, the aim of this study was to develop a web application, known as PanWeb, that serves as a graphical interface for PGAP. In addition, using the output files of the PGAP pipeline, the application generates graphics using custom-developed scripts in the R programming language. PanWeb is freely available at http://www.computationalbiology.ufpa.br/panweb.

  16. Using Maps in Web Analytics to Evaluate the Impact of Web-Based Extension Programs

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Veregin, Howard

    2015-01-01

    Maps can be a valuable addition to the Web analytics toolbox for Extension programs that use the Web to disseminate information. Extension professionals use Web analytics tools to evaluate program impacts. Maps add a unique perspective through visualization and analysis of geographic patterns and their relationships to other variables. Maps can…

  17. RefEx, a reference gene expression dataset as a web tool for the functional analysis of genes.

    PubMed

    Ono, Hiromasa; Ogasawara, Osamu; Okubo, Kosaku; Bono, Hidemasa

    2017-08-29

    Gene expression data are exponentially accumulating; thus, the functional annotation of such sequence data from metadata is urgently required. However, life scientists have difficulty utilizing the available data due to its sheer magnitude and complicated access. We have developed a web tool for browsing reference gene expression pattern of mammalian tissues and cell lines measured using different methods, which should facilitate the reuse of the precious data archived in several public databases. The web tool is called Reference Expression dataset (RefEx), and RefEx allows users to search by the gene name, various types of IDs, chromosomal regions in genetic maps, gene family based on InterPro, gene expression patterns, or biological categories based on Gene Ontology. RefEx also provides information about genes with tissue-specific expression, and the relative gene expression values are shown as choropleth maps on 3D human body images from BodyParts3D. Combined with the newly incorporated Functional Annotation of Mammals (FANTOM) dataset, RefEx provides insight regarding the functional interpretation of unfamiliar genes. RefEx is publicly available at http://refex.dbcls.jp/.

  18. SEPHYDRO: An Integrated Multi-Filter Web-Based Tool for Baseflow Separation

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Serban, D.; MacQuarrie, K. T. B.; Popa, A.

    2017-12-01

    Knowledge of baseflow contributions to streamflow is important for understanding watershed scale hydrology, including groundwater-surface water interactions, impact of geology and landforms on baseflow, estimation of groundwater recharge rates, etc. Baseflow (or hydrograph) separation methods can be used as supporting tools in many areas of environmental research, such as the assessment of the impact of agricultural practices, urbanization and climate change on surface water and groundwater. Over the past few decades various digital filtering and graphically-based methods have been developed in an attempt to improve the assessment of the dynamics of the various sources of streamflow (e.g. groundwater, surface runoff, subsurface flow); however, these methods are not available under an integrated platform and, individually, often require significant effort for implementation. Here we introduce SEPHYDRO, an open access, customizable web-based tool, which integrates 11 algorithms allowing for separation of streamflow hydrographs. The streamlined interface incorporates a reference guide as well as additional information that allows users to import their own data, customize the algorithms, and compare, visualise and export results. The tool includes one-, two- and three-parameter digital filters as well as graphical separation methods and has been successfully applied in Atlantic Canada, in studies dealing with nutrient loading to fresh water and coastal water ecosystems. Future developments include integration of additional separation algorithms as well as incorporation of geochemical separation methods. SEPHYDRO has been developed through a collaborative research effort between the Canadian Rivers Institute, University of New Brunswick (Fredericton, New Brunswick, Canada), Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada and Environment and Climate Change Canada and is currently available at http://canadianriversinstitute.com/tool/

  19. System Testing of Desktop and Web Applications

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Slack, James M.

    2011-01-01

    We want our students to experience system testing of both desktop and web applications, but the cost of professional system-testing tools is far too high. We evaluate several free tools and find that AutoIt makes an ideal educational system-testing tool. We show several examples of desktop and web testing with AutoIt, starting with simple…

  20. World-Wide Web Tools for Locating Planetary Images

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Kanefsky, Bob; Deiss, Ron (Technical Monitor)

    1995-01-01

    The explosive growth of the World-Wide Web (WWW) in the past year has made it feasible to provide interactive graphical tools to assist scientists in locating planetary images. The highest available resolution images of any site of interest can be quickly found on a map or plot, and, if online, displayed immediately on nearly any computer equipped with a color screen, an Internet connection, and any of the free WWW browsers. The same tools may also be of interest to educators, students, and the general public. Image finding tools have been implemented covering most of the solar system: Earth, Mars, and the moons and planets imaged by Voyager. The Mars image-finder, which plots the footprints of all the high-resolution Viking Orbiter images and can be used to display any that are available online, also contains a complete scrollable atlas and hypertext gazetteer to help locating areas. The Earth image-finder is linked to thousands of Shuttle images stored at NASA/JSC, and displays them as red dots on a globe. The Voyager image-finder plots images as dots, by longitude and apparent target size, linked to online images. The locator (URL) for the top-level page is http: //ic-www.arc.nasa.gov/ic/projects/bayes-group/Atlas/. Through the efforts of the Planetary Data System and other organizations, hundreds of thousands of planetary images are now available on CD-ROM, and many of these have been made available on the WWW. However, locating images of a desired site is still problematic, in practice. For example, many scientists studying Mars use digital image maps, which are one third the resolution of Viking Orbiter survey images. When they douse Viking Orbiter images, they often work with photographically printed hardcopies, which lack the flexibility of digital images: magnification, contrast stretching, and other basic image-processing techniques offered by off-the-shelf software. From the perspective of someone working on an experimental image processing technique for

  1. ClinVar miner: Demonstrating utility of a web-based tool for viewing and filtering clinvar data.

    PubMed

    Henrie, Alex; Hemphill, Sarah E; Ruiz-Schultz, Nicole; Cushman, Brandon; DiStefano, Marina T; Azzariti, Danielle; Harrison, Steven M; Rehm, Heidi L; Eilbeck, Karen

    2018-05-23

    ClinVar Miner is a web-based suite that utilizes the data held in the National Center for Biotechnology Information's ClinVar archive. The goal is to render the data more accessible to processes pertaining to conflict resolution of variant interpretation as well as tracking details of data submission and data management for detailed variant curation. Here we establish the use of these tools to address three separate use-cases and to perform analyses across submissions. We demonstrate that the ClinVar Miner tools are an effective means to browse and consolidate data for variant submitters, curation groups, and general oversight. These tools are also relevant to the variant interpretation community in general. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.

  2. The Semantic Web in Education

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Ohler, Jason

    2008-01-01

    The semantic web or Web 3.0 makes information more meaningful to people by making it more understandable to machines. In this article, the author examines the implications of Web 3.0 for education. The author considers three areas of impact: knowledge construction, personal learning network maintenance, and personal educational administration.…

  3. Haystack, a web-based tool for metabolomics research.

    PubMed

    Grace, Stephen C; Embry, Stephen; Luo, Heng

    2014-01-01

    Liquid chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry (LCMS) has become a widely used technique in metabolomics research for differential profiling, the broad screening of biomolecular constituents across multiple samples to diagnose phenotypic differences and elucidate relevant features. However, a significant limitation in LCMS-based metabolomics is the high-throughput data processing required for robust statistical analysis and data modeling for large numbers of samples with hundreds of unique chemical species. To address this problem, we developed Haystack, a web-based tool designed to visualize, parse, filter, and extract significant features from LCMS datasets rapidly and efficiently. Haystack runs in a browser environment with an intuitive graphical user interface that provides both display and data processing options. Total ion chromatograms (TICs) and base peak chromatograms (BPCs) are automatically displayed, along with time-resolved mass spectra and extracted ion chromatograms (EICs) over any mass range. Output files in the common .csv format can be saved for further statistical analysis or customized graphing. Haystack's core function is a flexible binning procedure that converts the mass dimension of the chromatogram into a set of interval variables that can uniquely identify a sample. Binned mass data can be analyzed by exploratory methods such as principal component analysis (PCA) to model class assignment and identify discriminatory features. The validity of this approach is demonstrated by comparison of a dataset from plants grown at two light conditions with manual and automated peak detection methods. Haystack successfully predicted class assignment based on PCA and cluster analysis, and identified discriminatory features based on analysis of EICs of significant bins. Haystack, a new online tool for rapid processing and analysis of LCMS-based metabolomics data is described. It offers users a range of data visualization options and supports non

  4. Assisting Tutors to Utilize Web 2.0 Tools in Education

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Perikos, Isidoros; Grivokostopoulou, Foteini; Kovas, Konstantinos; Hatzilygeroudis, Ioannis

    2015-01-01

    Over the last decade, web has changed the way that educational procedures are delivered to students and has brought innovative learning technologies and possibilities that were not available before. The Web has evolved to a worldwide platform for collaboration, sharing and innovation, constituting what is called Web 2.0. Social media are an…

  5. Protein Sequence Annotation Tool (PSAT): A centralized web-based meta-server for high-throughput sequence annotations

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

    Leung, Elo; Huang, Amy; Cadag, Eithon

    In this study, we introduce the Protein Sequence Annotation Tool (PSAT), a web-based, sequence annotation meta-server for performing integrated, high-throughput, genome-wide sequence analyses. Our goals in building PSAT were to (1) create an extensible platform for integration of multiple sequence-based bioinformatics tools, (2) enable functional annotations and enzyme predictions over large input protein fasta data sets, and (3) provide a web interface for convenient execution of the tools. In this paper, we demonstrate the utility of PSAT by annotating the predicted peptide gene products of Herbaspirillum sp. strain RV1423, importing the results of PSAT into EC2KEGG, and using the resultingmore » functional comparisons to identify a putative catabolic pathway, thereby distinguishing RV1423 from a well annotated Herbaspirillum species. This analysis demonstrates that high-throughput enzyme predictions, provided by PSAT processing, can be used to identify metabolic potential in an otherwise poorly annotated genome. Lastly, PSAT is a meta server that combines the results from several sequence-based annotation and function prediction codes, and is available at http://psat.llnl.gov/psat/. PSAT stands apart from other sequencebased genome annotation systems in providing a high-throughput platform for rapid de novo enzyme predictions and sequence annotations over large input protein sequence data sets in FASTA. PSAT is most appropriately applied in annotation of large protein FASTA sets that may or may not be associated with a single genome.« less

  6. Protein Sequence Annotation Tool (PSAT): A centralized web-based meta-server for high-throughput sequence annotations

    DOE PAGES

    Leung, Elo; Huang, Amy; Cadag, Eithon; ...

    2016-01-20

    In this study, we introduce the Protein Sequence Annotation Tool (PSAT), a web-based, sequence annotation meta-server for performing integrated, high-throughput, genome-wide sequence analyses. Our goals in building PSAT were to (1) create an extensible platform for integration of multiple sequence-based bioinformatics tools, (2) enable functional annotations and enzyme predictions over large input protein fasta data sets, and (3) provide a web interface for convenient execution of the tools. In this paper, we demonstrate the utility of PSAT by annotating the predicted peptide gene products of Herbaspirillum sp. strain RV1423, importing the results of PSAT into EC2KEGG, and using the resultingmore » functional comparisons to identify a putative catabolic pathway, thereby distinguishing RV1423 from a well annotated Herbaspirillum species. This analysis demonstrates that high-throughput enzyme predictions, provided by PSAT processing, can be used to identify metabolic potential in an otherwise poorly annotated genome. Lastly, PSAT is a meta server that combines the results from several sequence-based annotation and function prediction codes, and is available at http://psat.llnl.gov/psat/. PSAT stands apart from other sequencebased genome annotation systems in providing a high-throughput platform for rapid de novo enzyme predictions and sequence annotations over large input protein sequence data sets in FASTA. PSAT is most appropriately applied in annotation of large protein FASTA sets that may or may not be associated with a single genome.« less

  7. Googling DNA sequences on the World Wide Web.

    PubMed

    Hajibabaei, Mehrdad; Singer, Gregory A C

    2009-11-10

    New web-based technologies provide an excellent opportunity for sharing and accessing information and using web as a platform for interaction and collaboration. Although several specialized tools are available for analyzing DNA sequence information, conventional web-based tools have not been utilized for bioinformatics applications. We have developed a novel algorithm and implemented it for searching species-specific genomic sequences, DNA barcodes, by using popular web-based methods such as Google. We developed an alignment independent character based algorithm based on dividing a sequence library (DNA barcodes) and query sequence to words. The actual search is conducted by conventional search tools such as freely available Google Desktop Search. We implemented our algorithm in two exemplar packages. We developed pre and post-processing software to provide customized input and output services, respectively. Our analysis of all publicly available DNA barcode sequences shows a high accuracy as well as rapid results. Our method makes use of conventional web-based technologies for specialized genetic data. It provides a robust and efficient solution for sequence search on the web. The integration of our search method for large-scale sequence libraries such as DNA barcodes provides an excellent web-based tool for accessing this information and linking it to other available categories of information on the web.

  8. Technology and tuberculosis control: the OUT-TB Web experience.

    PubMed

    Guthrie, Jennifer L; Alexander, David C; Marchand-Austin, Alex; Lam, Karen; Whelan, Michael; Lee, Brenda; Furness, Colin; Rea, Elizabeth; Stuart, Rebecca; Lechner, Julia; Varia, Monali; McLean, Jennifer; Jamieson, Frances B

    2017-04-01

    Develop a tool to disseminate integrated laboratory, clinical, and demographic case data necessary for improved contact tracing and outbreak detection of tuberculosis (TB). In 2007, the Public Health Ontario Laboratories implemented a universal genotyping program to monitor the spread of TB strains within Ontario. Ontario Universal Typing of TB (OUT-TB) Web utilizes geographic information system (GIS) technology with a relational database platform, allowing TB control staff to visualize genotyping matches and microbiological data within the context of relevant epidemiological and demographic data. OUT-TB Web is currently available to the 8 health units responsible for >85% of Ontario's TB cases and is a valuable tool for TB case investigation. Users identified key features to implement for application enhancements, including an e-mail alert function, customizable heat maps for visualizing TB and drug-resistant cases, socioeconomic map layers, a dashboard providing TB surveillance metrics, and a feature for animating the geographic spread of strains over time. OUT-TB Web has proven to be an award-winning application and a useful tool. Developed and enhanced using regular user feedback, future versions will include additional data sources, enhanced map and line-list filter capabilities, and development of a mobile app. © The Author 2016. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the American Medical Informatics Association. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com

  9. Helioviewer: A Web 2.0 Tool for Visualizing Heterogeneous Heliophysics Data

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Hughitt, V. K.; Ireland, J.; Lynch, M. J.; Schmeidel, P.; Dimitoglou, G.; Müeller, D.; Fleck, B.

    2008-12-01

    Solar physics datasets are becoming larger, richer, more numerous and more distributed. Feature/event catalogs (describing objects of interest in the original data) are becoming important tools in navigating these data. In the wake of this increasing influx of data and catalogs there has been a growing need for highly sophisticated tools for accessing and visualizing this wealth of information. Helioviewer is a novel tool for integrating and visualizing disparate sources of solar and Heliophysics data. Taking advantage of the newly available power of modern web application frameworks, Helioviewer merges image and feature catalog data, and provides for Heliophysics data a familiar interface not unlike Google Maps or MapQuest. In addition to streamlining the process of combining heterogeneous Heliophysics datatypes such as full-disk images and coronagraphs, the inclusion of visual representations of automated and human-annotated features provides the user with an integrated and intuitive view of how different factors may be interacting on the Sun. Currently, Helioviewer offers images from The Extreme ultraviolet Imaging Telescope (EIT), The Large Angle and Spectrometric COronagraph experiment (LASCO) and the Michelson Doppler Imager (MDI) instruments onboard The Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO), as well as The Transition Region and Coronal Explorer (TRACE). Helioviewer also incorporates feature/event information from the LASCO CME List, NOAA Active Regions, CACTus CME and Type II Radio Bursts feature/event catalogs. The project is undergoing continuous development with many more data sources and additional functionality planned for the near future.

  10. The Web Resource Collaboration Center

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Dunlap, Joanna C.

    2004-01-01

    The Web Resource Collaboration Center (WRCC) is a web-based tool developed to help software engineers build their own web-based learning and performance support systems. Designed using various online communication and collaboration technologies, the WRCC enables people to: (1) build a learning and professional development resource that provides…

  11. State Health Mapper: An Interactive, Web-Based Tool for Physician Workforce Planning, Recruitment, and Health Services Research.

    PubMed

    Krause, Denise D

    2015-11-01

    Health rankings in Mississippi are abysmal. Mississippi also has fewer physicians to serve its population compared with all other states. Many residents of this predominately rural state do not have access to healthcare providers. To better understand the demographics and distribution of the current health workforce in Mississippi, the main objective of the study was to design a Web-based, spatial, interactive application to visualize and explore the physician workforce. A Web application was designed to assist in health workforce planning. Secondary datasets of licensure and population information were obtained, and live feeds from licensure systems are being established. Several technologies were used to develop an intuitive, user-friendly application. Custom programming was completed in JavaScript so the application could run on most platforms, including mobile devices. The application allows users to identify and query geographic locations of individual or aggregated physicians based on attributes included in the licensure data, to perform drive time or buffer analyses, and to explore sociodemographic population data by geographic area of choice. This Web-based application with analytical tools visually represents the physician workforce licensed in Mississippi and its attributes, and provides access to much-needed information for statewide health workforce planning and research. The success of the application is not only based on the practicality of the tool but also on its ease of use. Feedback has been positive and has come from a wide variety of organizations across the state.

  12. Research and Teaching: WikiED--Using Web 2.0 Tools to Teach Content and Critical Thinking

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Frisch, Jennifer K.; Jackson, Paula C.; Murray, Meg C.

    2013-01-01

    WIKIed Biology is a National Science Foundation Transforming Undergraduate Education in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics interdisciplinary project in which the authors developed and implemented a model for student centered, inquiry-driven instruction using Web 2.0 technologies to increase inquiry and conceptual understanding in…

  13. Easy Web Interfaces to IDL Code for NSTX Data Analysis

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

    W.M. Davis

    Reusing code is a well-known Software Engineering practice to substantially increase the efficiency of code production, as well as to reduce errors and debugging time. A variety of "Web Tools" for the analysis and display of raw and analyzed physics data are in use on NSTX [1], and new ones can be produced quickly from existing IDL [2] code. A Web Tool with only a few inputs, and which calls an IDL routine written in the proper style, can be created in less than an hour; more typical Web Tools with dozens of inputs, and the need for some adaptationmore » of existing IDL code, can be working in a day or so. Efficiency is also increased for users of Web Tools because o f the familiar interface of the web browser, and not needing X-windows, accounts, passwords, etc. Web Tools were adapted for use by PPPL physicists accessing EAST data stored in MDSplus with only a few man-weeks of effort; adapting to additional sites should now be even easier. An overview of Web Tools in use on NSTX, and a list of the most useful features, is also presented.« less

  14. MODEST: a web-based design tool for oligonucleotide-mediated genome engineering and recombineering

    PubMed Central

    Bonde, Mads T.; Klausen, Michael S.; Anderson, Mads V.; Wallin, Annika I.N.; Wang, Harris H.; Sommer, Morten O.A.

    2014-01-01

    Recombineering and multiplex automated genome engineering (MAGE) offer the possibility to rapidly modify multiple genomic or plasmid sites at high efficiencies. This enables efficient creation of genetic variants including both single mutants with specifically targeted modifications as well as combinatorial cell libraries. Manual design of oligonucleotides for these approaches can be tedious, time-consuming, and may not be practical for larger projects targeting many genomic sites. At present, the change from a desired phenotype (e.g. altered expression of a specific protein) to a designed MAGE oligo, which confers the corresponding genetic change, is performed manually. To address these challenges, we have developed the MAGE Oligo Design Tool (MODEST). This web-based tool allows designing of MAGE oligos for (i) tuning translation rates by modifying the ribosomal binding site, (ii) generating translational gene knockouts and (iii) introducing other coding or non-coding mutations, including amino acid substitutions, insertions, deletions and point mutations. The tool automatically designs oligos based on desired genotypic or phenotypic changes defined by the user, which can be used for high efficiency recombineering and MAGE. MODEST is available for free and is open to all users at http://modest.biosustain.dtu.dk. PMID:24838561

  15. Primers-4-Yeast: a comprehensive web tool for planning primers for Saccharomyces cerevisiae.

    PubMed

    Yofe, Ido; Schuldiner, Maya

    2014-02-01

    The budding yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae is a key model organism of functional genomics, due to its ease and speed of genetic manipulations. In fact, in this yeast, the requirement for homologous sequences for recombination purposes is so small that 40 base pairs (bp) are sufficient. Hence, an enormous variety of genetic manipulations can be performed by simply planning primers with the correct homology, using a defined set of transformation plasmids. Although designing primers for yeast transformations and for the verification of their correct insertion is a common task in all yeast laboratories, primer planning is usually done manually and a tool that would enable easy, automated primer planning for the yeast research community is still lacking. Here we introduce Primers-4-Yeast, a web tool that allows primers to be designed in batches for S. cerevisiae gene-targeting transformations, and for the validation of correct insertions. This novel tool enables fast, automated, accurate primer planning for large sets of genes, introduces consistency in primer planning and is therefore suggested to serve as a standard in yeast research. Primers-4-Yeast is available at: http://www.weizmann.ac.il/Primers-4-Yeast Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

  16. Introducing the PRIDE Archive RESTful web services.

    PubMed

    Reisinger, Florian; del-Toro, Noemi; Ternent, Tobias; Hermjakob, Henning; Vizcaíno, Juan Antonio

    2015-07-01

    The PRIDE (PRoteomics IDEntifications) database is one of the world-leading public repositories of mass spectrometry (MS)-based proteomics data and it is a founding member of the ProteomeXchange Consortium of proteomics resources. In the original PRIDE database system, users could access data programmatically by accessing the web services provided by the PRIDE BioMart interface. New REST (REpresentational State Transfer) web services have been developed to serve the most popular functionality provided by BioMart (now discontinued due to data scalability issues) and address the data access requirements of the newly developed PRIDE Archive. Using the API (Application Programming Interface) it is now possible to programmatically query for and retrieve peptide and protein identifications, project and assay metadata and the originally submitted files. Searching and filtering is also possible by metadata information, such as sample details (e.g. species and tissues), instrumentation (mass spectrometer), keywords and other provided annotations. The PRIDE Archive web services were first made available in April 2014. The API has already been adopted by a few applications and standalone tools such as PeptideShaker, PRIDE Inspector, the Unipept web application and the Python-based BioServices package. This application is free and open to all users with no login requirement and can be accessed at http://www.ebi.ac.uk/pride/ws/archive/. © The Author(s) 2015. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Nucleic Acids Research.

  17. PAT: an intelligent authoring tool for facilitating clinical trial design.

    PubMed

    Tagaris, Anastasios; Andronikou, Vassiliki; Karanastasis, Efstathios; Chondrogiannis, Efthymios; Tsirmpas, Charalambos; Varvarigou, Theodora; Koutsouris, Dimitris

    2014-01-01

    Great investments are made by both private and public funds and a wealth of research findings is published, the research and development pipeline phases quite low productivity and tremendous delays. In this paper, we present a novel authoring tool which has been designed and developed for facilitating study design. Its underlying models are based on a thorough analysis of existing clinical trial protocols (CTPs) and eligibility criteria (EC) published in clinicaltrials.gov by domain experts. Moreover, its integration with intelligent decision support services and mechanisms linking the study design process with healthcare patient data as well as its direct access to literature designate it as a powerful tool offering great support to researchers during clinical trial design.

  18. Web-Based Phylogenetic Assignment Tool for Analysis of Terminal Restriction Fragment Length Polymorphism Profiles of Microbial Communities

    PubMed Central

    Kent, Angela D.; Smith, Dan J.; Benson, Barbara J.; Triplett, Eric W.

    2003-01-01

    Culture-independent DNA fingerprints are commonly used to assess the diversity of a microbial community. However, relating species composition to community profiles produced by community fingerprint methods is not straightforward. Terminal restriction fragment length polymorphism (T-RFLP) is a community fingerprint method in which phylogenetic assignments may be inferred from the terminal restriction fragment (T-RF) sizes through the use of web-based resources that predict T-RF sizes for known bacteria. The process quickly becomes computationally intensive due to the need to analyze profiles produced by multiple restriction digests and the complexity of profiles generated by natural microbial communities. A web-based tool is described here that rapidly generates phylogenetic assignments from submitted community T-RFLP profiles based on a database of fragments produced by known 16S rRNA gene sequences. Users have the option of submitting a customized database generated from unpublished sequences or from a gene other than the 16S rRNA gene. This phylogenetic assignment tool allows users to employ T-RFLP to simultaneously analyze microbial community diversity and species composition. An analysis of the variability of bacterial species composition throughout the water column in a humic lake was carried out to demonstrate the functionality of the phylogenetic assignment tool. This method was validated by comparing the results generated by this program with results from a 16S rRNA gene clone library. PMID:14602639

  19. A Web-Based Treatment Decision Support Tool for Patients With Advanced Knee Arthritis: Evaluation of User Interface and Content Design

    PubMed Central

    Zheng, Hua; Rosal, Milagros C; Li, Wenjun; Borg, Amy; Yang, Wenyun; Ayers, David C

    2018-01-01

    Background Data-driven surgical decisions will ensure proper use and timing of surgical care. We developed a Web-based patient-centered treatment decision and assessment tool to guide treatment decisions among patients with advanced knee osteoarthritis who are considering total knee replacement surgery. Objective The aim of this study was to examine user experience and acceptance of the Web-based treatment decision support tool among older adults. Methods User-centered formative and summative evaluations were conducted for the tool. A sample of 28 patients who were considering total knee replacement participated in the study. Participants’ responses to the user interface design, the clarity of information, as well as usefulness, satisfaction, and acceptance of the tool were collected through qualitative (ie, individual patient interviews) and quantitative (ie, standardized Computer System Usability Questionnaire) methods. Results Participants were older adults with a mean age of 63 (SD 11) years. Three-quarters of them had no technical questions using the tool. User interface design recommendations included larger fonts, bigger buttons, less colors, simpler navigation without extra “next page” click, less mouse movement, and clearer illustrations with simple graphs. Color-coded bar charts and outcome-specific graphs with positive action were easiest for them to understand the outcomes data. Questionnaire data revealed high satisfaction with the tool usefulness and interface quality, and also showed ease of use of the tool, regardless of age or educational status. Conclusions We evaluated the usability of a patient-centered decision support tool designed for advanced knee arthritis patients to facilitate their knee osteoarthritis treatment decision making. The lessons learned can inform other decision support tools to improve interface and content design for older patients’ use. PMID:29712620

  20. WebDASC: a web-based dietary assessment software for 8-11-year-old Danish children.

    PubMed

    Biltoft-Jensen, A; Trolle, E; Christensen, T; Islam, N; Andersen, L F; Egenfeldt-Nielsen, S; Tetens, I

    2014-01-01

      The present study describes the development and formative evaluation of the Web-based Dietary Assessment Software for Children (WebDASC). WebDASC is part of the OPUS project ('Optimal well-being, development and health for Danish children through a healthy New Nordic Diet') and was intended to measure dietary change resulting from a school-based intervention.   WebDASC was developed as a self-administered tool that could be used by 8-11-year-old children with or without parent's aid. The development of WebDASC followed a prototyping approach: focus groups, informal interviews, literature review, and usability tests preceded its release. Special consideration was given to age-appropriate design issues.   In WebDASC an animated armadillo guides respondents through six daily eating occasions and helps them report foods and beverages previously consumed. A database of 1300 food items is available either through category browse or free text search, aided by a spell check application. A type-in format is available for foods not otherwise found through category browse or text search. Amount consumed is estimated by selecting the closest portion size among four different digital images. WebDASC includes internal checks for frequently forgotten foods, and the following features to create motivation: a food-meter displaying cumulative weight of foods reported, a most popular food ranking, and a computer game with a high score list.   WebDASC was developed as an intuitive, cost-effective, and engaging method to collect detailed dietary data from 8- to 11-year-old children. Preliminary testing demonstrated that it was well accepted among children. © 2012 The Authors. Journal of Human Nutrition and Dietetics © 2012 The British Dietetic Association Ltd.

  1. WebMeV | Informatics Technology for Cancer Research (ITCR)

    Cancer.gov

    Web MeV (Multiple-experiment Viewer) is a web/cloud-based tool for genomic data analysis. Web MeV is being built to meet the challenge of exploring large public genomic data set with intuitive graphical interface providing access to state-of-the-art analytical tools.

  2. Change Management Meets Web 2.0

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Gale, Doug

    2008-01-01

    Web 2.0 is the term used to describe a group of web-based creativity, information-sharing, and collaboration tools including wikis, blogs, social networks, and folksonomies. The common thread in all of these tools is twofold: They enable collaboration and information sharing, and their impact on higher education has been dramatic. A recent study…

  3. Spatial Data Uncertainty in a Webgis Tool Supporting Sediments Management in Wallonia

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Stéphenne, N. R.; Beaumont, B.; Veschkens, M.; Palm, S.; Charlemagne, C.

    2015-08-01

    This paper describes a WebGIS prototype developed for the Walloon administration to improve the communication and the management of sediments dredging actions carried out in rivers and lakes. In Wallonia, levelling dredged sediments on banks requires an official authorization from the administration. This request refers to geospatial datasets such as the official land use map, the cadastral map or the distance to potential pollution sources. Centralising geodatabases within a web interface facilitate the management of these authorizations for the managers and the central administration. The proposed system integrates various data from disparate sources. Some issues in map scale, spatial search quality and cartographic visualisation are discussed in this paper with the solutions provided. The prototype web application is currently discussed with some potential users in order to understand in which way this tool facilitate the communication, the management and the quality of the authorisation process. The structure of the paper states the why, what, who and how of this communication tool with a special focus on errors and uncertainties.

  4. Distribution and Validation of CERES Irradiance Global Data Products Via Web Based Tools

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Rutan, David; Mitrescu, Cristian; Doelling, David; Kato, Seiji

    2016-01-01

    The CERES SYN1deg product provides climate quality 3-hourly globally gridded and temporally complete maps of top of atmosphere, in atmosphere, and surface fluxes. This product requires efficient release to the public and validation to maintain quality assurance. The CERES team developed web-tools for the distribution of both the global gridded products and grid boxes that contain long term validation sites that maintain high quality flux observations at the Earth's surface. These are found at: http://ceres.larc.nasa.gov/order_data.php. In this poster we explore the various tools available to users to sub-set, download, and validate using surface observations the SYN1Deg and Surface-EBAF products. We also analyze differences found in long-term records from well-maintained land surface sites such as the ARM central facility and high quality buoy radiometers, which due to their isolated nature cannot be maintained in a similar manner to their land based counterparts.

  5. Improving the Identification of Neonatal Encephalopathy: Utility of a Web-Based Video Tool.

    PubMed

    Ivy, Autumn S; Clark, Catherine L; Bahm, Sarah M; Meurs, Krisa P Van; Wusthoff, Courtney J

    2017-04-01

    Objective  This study tested the effectiveness of a video teaching tool in improving identification and classification of encephalopathy in infants. Study Design  We developed an innovative video teaching tool to help clinicians improve their skills in interpreting the neonatal neurological examination for grading encephalopathy. Pediatric residents were shown 1-minute video clips demonstrating exam findings in normal neonates and neonates with various degrees of encephalopathy. Findings from five domains were demonstrated: spontaneous activity, level of alertness, posture/tone, reflexes, and autonomic responses. After each clip, subjects were asked to identify whether the exam finding was normal or consistent with mild, moderate, or severe abnormality. Subjects were then directed to a web-based teaching toolkit, containing a compilation of videos demonstrating normal and abnormal findings on the neonatal neurological examination. Immediately after training, subjects underwent posttesting, again identifying exam findings as normal, mild, moderate, or severe abnormality. Results  Residents improved in their overall ability to identify and classify neonatal encephalopathy after viewing the teaching tool. In particular, the identification of abnormal spontaneous activity, reflexes, and autonomic responses were most improved. Conclusion  This pretest/posttest evaluation of an educational tool demonstrates that after viewing our toolkit, pediatric residents were able to improve their overall ability to detect neonatal encephalopathy. Thieme Medical Publishers 333 Seventh Avenue, New York, NY 10001, USA.

  6. Motif enrichment tool.

    PubMed

    Blatti, Charles; Sinha, Saurabh

    2014-07-01

    The Motif Enrichment Tool (MET) provides an online interface that enables users to find major transcriptional regulators of their gene sets of interest. MET searches the appropriate regulatory region around each gene and identifies which transcription factor DNA-binding specificities (motifs) are statistically overrepresented. Motif enrichment analysis is currently available for many metazoan species including human, mouse, fruit fly, planaria and flowering plants. MET also leverages high-throughput experimental data such as ChIP-seq and DNase-seq from ENCODE and ModENCODE to identify the regulatory targets of a transcription factor with greater precision. The results from MET are produced in real time and are linked to a genome browser for easy follow-up analysis. Use of the web tool is free and open to all, and there is no login requirement. ADDRESS: http://veda.cs.uiuc.edu/MET/. © The Author(s) 2014. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Nucleic Acids Research.

  7. miRNAFold: a web server for fast miRNA precursor prediction in genomes.

    PubMed

    Tav, Christophe; Tempel, Sébastien; Poligny, Laurent; Tahi, Fariza

    2016-07-08

    Computational methods are required for prediction of non-coding RNAs (ncRNAs), which are involved in many biological processes, especially at post-transcriptional level. Among these ncRNAs, miRNAs have been largely studied and biologists need efficient and fast tools for their identification. In particular, ab initio methods are usually required when predicting novel miRNAs. Here we present a web server dedicated for miRNA precursors identification at a large scale in genomes. It is based on an algorithm called miRNAFold that allows predicting miRNA hairpin structures quickly with high sensitivity. miRNAFold is implemented as a web server with an intuitive and user-friendly interface, as well as a standalone version. The web server is freely available at: http://EvryRNA.ibisc.univ-evry.fr/miRNAFold. © The Author(s) 2016. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Nucleic Acids Research.

  8. Web Apollo: a web-based genomic annotation editing platform.

    PubMed

    Lee, Eduardo; Helt, Gregg A; Reese, Justin T; Munoz-Torres, Monica C; Childers, Chris P; Buels, Robert M; Stein, Lincoln; Holmes, Ian H; Elsik, Christine G; Lewis, Suzanna E

    2013-08-30

    Web Apollo is the first instantaneous, collaborative genomic annotation editor available on the web. One of the natural consequences following from current advances in sequencing technology is that there are more and more researchers sequencing new genomes. These researchers require tools to describe the functional features of their newly sequenced genomes. With Web Apollo researchers can use any of the common browsers (for example, Chrome or Firefox) to jointly analyze and precisely describe the features of a genome in real time, whether they are in the same room or working from opposite sides of the world.

  9. Web Apollo: a web-based genomic annotation editing platform

    PubMed Central

    2013-01-01

    Web Apollo is the first instantaneous, collaborative genomic annotation editor available on the web. One of the natural consequences following from current advances in sequencing technology is that there are more and more researchers sequencing new genomes. These researchers require tools to describe the functional features of their newly sequenced genomes. With Web Apollo researchers can use any of the common browsers (for example, Chrome or Firefox) to jointly analyze and precisely describe the features of a genome in real time, whether they are in the same room or working from opposite sides of the world. PMID:24000942

  10. Trust estimation of the semantic web using semantic web clustering

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Shirgahi, Hossein; Mohsenzadeh, Mehran; Haj Seyyed Javadi, Hamid

    2017-05-01

    Development of semantic web and social network is undeniable in the Internet world these days. Widespread nature of semantic web has been very challenging to assess the trust in this field. In recent years, extensive researches have been done to estimate the trust of semantic web. Since trust of semantic web is a multidimensional problem, in this paper, we used parameters of social network authority, the value of pages links authority and semantic authority to assess the trust. Due to the large space of semantic network, we considered the problem scope to the clusters of semantic subnetworks and obtained the trust of each cluster elements as local and calculated the trust of outside resources according to their local trusts and trust of clusters to each other. According to the experimental result, the proposed method shows more than 79% Fscore that is about 11.9% in average more than Eigen, Tidal and centralised trust methods. Mean of error in this proposed method is 12.936, that is 9.75% in average less than Eigen and Tidal trust methods.

  11. Developing, deploying and reflecting on a web-based geologic simulation tool

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Cockett, R.

    2015-12-01

    Geoscience is visual. It requires geoscientists to think and communicate about processes and events in three spatial dimensions and variations through time. This is hard(!), and students often have difficulty when learning and visualizing the three dimensional and temporal concepts. Visible Geology is an online geologic block modelling tool that is targeted at students in introductory and structural geology. With Visible Geology, students are able to combine geologic events in any order to create their own geologic models and ask 'what-if' questions, as well as interrogate their models using cross sections, boreholes and depth slices. Instructors use it as a simulation and communication tool in demonstrations, and students use it to explore concepts of relative geologic time, structural relationships, as well as visualize abstract geologic representations such as stereonets. The level of interactivity and creativity inherent in Visible Geology often results in a sense of ownership and encourages engagement, leading learners to practice visualization and interpretation skills and discover geologic relationships. Through its development over the last five years, Visible Geology has been used by over 300K students worldwide as well as in multiple targeted studies at the University of Calgary and at the University of British Columbia. The ease of use of the software has made this tool practical for deployment in classrooms of any size as well as for individual use. In this presentation, I will discuss the thoughts behind the implementation and layout of the tool, including a framework used for the development and design of new educational simulations. I will also share some of the surprising and unexpected observations on student interaction with the 3D visualizations, and other insights that are enabled by web-based development and deployment.

  12. WebEAV

    PubMed Central

    Nadkarni, Prakash M.; Brandt, Cynthia M.; Marenco, Luis

    2000-01-01

    The task of creating and maintaining a front end to a large institutional entity-attribute-value (EAV) database can be cumbersome when using traditional client-server technology. Switching to Web technology as a delivery vehicle solves some of these problems but introduces others. In particular, Web development environments tend to be primitive, and many features that client-server developers take for granted are missing. WebEAV is a generic framework for Web development that is intended to streamline the process of Web application development for databases having a significant EAV component. It also addresses some challenging user interface issues that arise when any complex system is created. The authors describe the architecture of WebEAV and provide an overview of its features with suitable examples. PMID:10887163

  13. Web 2.0 Applications in Medicine: Trends and Topics in the Literature

    PubMed Central

    2015-01-01

    Background The World Wide Web has changed research habits, and these changes were further expanded when “Web 2.0” became popular in 2005. Bibliometrics is a helpful tool used for describing patterns of publication, for interpreting progression over time, and the geographical distribution of research in a given field. Few studies employing bibliometrics, however, have been carried out on the correlative nature of scientific literature and Web 2.0. Objective The aim of this bibliometric analysis was to provide an overview of Web 2.0 implications in the biomedical literature. The objectives were to assess the growth rate of literature, key journals, authors, and country contributions, and to evaluate whether the various Web 2.0 applications were expressed within this biomedical literature, and if so, how. Methods A specific query with keywords chosen to be representative of Web 2.0 applications was built for the PubMed database. Articles related to Web 2.0 were downloaded in Extensible Markup Language (XML) and were processed through developed hypertext preprocessor (PHP) scripts, then imported to Microsoft Excel 2010 for data processing. Results A total of 1347 articles were included in this study. The number of articles related to Web 2.0 has been increasing from 2002 to 2012 (average annual growth rate was 106.3% with a maximum of 333% in 2005). The United States was by far the predominant country for authors, with 514 articles (54.0%; 514/952). The second and third most productive countries were the United Kingdom and Australia, with 87 (9.1%; 87/952) and 44 articles (4.6%; 44/952), respectively. Distribution of number of articles per author showed that the core population of researchers working on Web 2.0 in the medical field could be estimated at approximately 75. In total, 614 journals were identified during this analysis. Using Bradford’s law, 27 core journals were identified, among which three (Studies in Health Technology and Informatics, Journal of

  14. Collaboratively Conceived, Designed and Implemented: Matching Visualization Tools with Geoscience Data Collections and Geoscience Data Collections with Visualization Tools via the ToolMatch Service.

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Hoebelheinrich, N. J.; Lynnes, C.; West, P.; Ferritto, M.

    2014-12-01

    Two problems common to many geoscience domains are the difficulties in finding tools to work with a given dataset collection, and conversely, the difficulties in finding data for a known tool. A collaborative team from the Earth Science Information Partnership (ESIP) has gotten together to design and create a web service, called ToolMatch, to address these problems. The team began their efforts by defining an initial, relatively simple conceptual model that addressed the two uses cases briefly described above. The conceptual model is expressed as an ontology using OWL (Web Ontology Language) and DCterms (Dublin Core Terms), and utilizing standard ontologies such as DOAP (Description of a Project), FOAF (Friend of a Friend), SKOS (Simple Knowledge Organization System) and DCAT (Data Catalog Vocabulary). The ToolMatch service will be taking advantage of various Semantic Web and Web standards, such as OpenSearch, RESTful web services, SWRL (Semantic Web Rule Language) and SPARQL (Simple Protocol and RDF Query Language). The first version of the ToolMatch service was deployed in early fall 2014. While more complete testing is required, a number of communities besides ESIP member organizations have expressed interest in collaborating to create, test and use the service and incorporate it into their own web pages, tools and / or services including the USGS Data Catalog service, DataONE, the Deep Carbon Observatory, Virtual Solar Terrestrial Observatory (VSTO), and the U.S. Global Change Research Program. In this session, presenters will discuss the inception and development of the ToolMatch service, the collaborative process used to design, refine, and test the service, and future plans for the service.

  15. Study on Web-Based Tool for Regional Agriculture Industry Structure Optimization Using Ajax

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Huang, Xiaodong; Zhu, Yeping

    According to the research status of regional agriculture industry structure adjustment information system and the current development of information technology, this paper takes web-based regional agriculture industry structure optimization tool as research target. This paper introduces Ajax technology and related application frameworks to build an auxiliary toolkit of decision support system for agricultural policy maker and economy researcher. The toolkit includes a “one page” style component of regional agriculture industry structure optimization which provides agile arguments setting method that enables applying sensitivity analysis and usage of data and comparative advantage analysis result, and a component that can solve the linear programming model and its dual problem by simplex method.

  16. Usage Analysis of Web 2.0 and Library 2.0 Tools by Librarians in Kwara State Academic Libraries

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Tella, Adeyinka; Soluoku, Taofeeqat

    2016-01-01

    This study analysed the usage of Web 2.0 and Library 2.0 tools by librarians in Kwara State academic libraries. A sample of 40 librarians was surveyed through total enumeration sampling technique from four different tertiary education institutions libraries in Kwara State, Nigeria. Questionnaire was used for the collection of data. The collected…

  17. Web Instruction with the LBO Model.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Agarwal, Rajshree; Day, A. Edward

    2000-01-01

    Presents a Web site that utilizes the Learning-by-Objective (LBO) model that integrates Internet tools for knowledge transmission, communication, and assessment of learning. Explains that the LBO model has been used in creating micro and macroeconomic course Web sites with WebCT software. (CMK)

  18. Integration of modern statistical tools for the analysis of climate extremes into the web-GIS “CLIMATE”

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Ryazanova, A. A.; Okladnikov, I. G.; Gordov, E. P.

    2017-11-01

    The frequency of occurrence and magnitude of precipitation and temperature extreme events show positive trends in several geographical regions. These events must be analyzed and studied in order to better understand their impact on the environment, predict their occurrences, and mitigate their effects. For this purpose, we augmented web-GIS called “CLIMATE” to include a dedicated statistical package developed in the R language. The web-GIS “CLIMATE” is a software platform for cloud storage processing and visualization of distributed archives of spatial datasets. It is based on a combined use of web and GIS technologies with reliable procedures for searching, extracting, processing, and visualizing the spatial data archives. The system provides a set of thematic online tools for the complex analysis of current and future climate changes and their effects on the environment. The package includes new powerful methods of time-dependent statistics of extremes, quantile regression and copula approach for the detailed analysis of various climate extreme events. Specifically, the very promising copula approach allows obtaining the structural connections between the extremes and the various environmental characteristics. The new statistical methods integrated into the web-GIS “CLIMATE” can significantly facilitate and accelerate the complex analysis of climate extremes using only a desktop PC connected to the Internet.

  19. RefEx, a reference gene expression dataset as a web tool for the functional analysis of genes

    PubMed Central

    Ono, Hiromasa; Ogasawara, Osamu; Okubo, Kosaku; Bono, Hidemasa

    2017-01-01

    Gene expression data are exponentially accumulating; thus, the functional annotation of such sequence data from metadata is urgently required. However, life scientists have difficulty utilizing the available data due to its sheer magnitude and complicated access. We have developed a web tool for browsing reference gene expression pattern of mammalian tissues and cell lines measured using different methods, which should facilitate the reuse of the precious data archived in several public databases. The web tool is called Reference Expression dataset (RefEx), and RefEx allows users to search by the gene name, various types of IDs, chromosomal regions in genetic maps, gene family based on InterPro, gene expression patterns, or biological categories based on Gene Ontology. RefEx also provides information about genes with tissue-specific expression, and the relative gene expression values are shown as choropleth maps on 3D human body images from BodyParts3D. Combined with the newly incorporated Functional Annotation of Mammals (FANTOM) dataset, RefEx provides insight regarding the functional interpretation of unfamiliar genes. RefEx is publicly available at http://refex.dbcls.jp/. PMID:28850115

  20. A Web-Based Treatment Decision Support Tool for Patients With Advanced Knee Arthritis: Evaluation of User Interface and Content Design.

    PubMed

    Zheng, Hua; Rosal, Milagros C; Li, Wenjun; Borg, Amy; Yang, Wenyun; Ayers, David C; Franklin, Patricia D

    2018-04-30

    Data-driven surgical decisions will ensure proper use and timing of surgical care. We developed a Web-based patient-centered treatment decision and assessment tool to guide treatment decisions among patients with advanced knee osteoarthritis who are considering total knee replacement surgery. The aim of this study was to examine user experience and acceptance of the Web-based treatment decision support tool among older adults. User-centered formative and summative evaluations were conducted for the tool. A sample of 28 patients who were considering total knee replacement participated in the study. Participants' responses to the user interface design, the clarity of information, as well as usefulness, satisfaction, and acceptance of the tool were collected through qualitative (ie, individual patient interviews) and quantitative (ie, standardized Computer System Usability Questionnaire) methods. Participants were older adults with a mean age of 63 (SD 11) years. Three-quarters of them had no technical questions using the tool. User interface design recommendations included larger fonts, bigger buttons, less colors, simpler navigation without extra "next page" click, less mouse movement, and clearer illustrations with simple graphs. Color-coded bar charts and outcome-specific graphs with positive action were easiest for them to understand the outcomes data. Questionnaire data revealed high satisfaction with the tool usefulness and interface quality, and also showed ease of use of the tool, regardless of age or educational status. We evaluated the usability of a patient-centered decision support tool designed for advanced knee arthritis patients to facilitate their knee osteoarthritis treatment decision making. The lessons learned can inform other decision support tools to improve interface and content design for older patients' use. ©Hua Zheng, Milagros C Rosal, Wenjun Li, Amy Borg, Wenyun Yang, David C Ayers, Patricia D Franklin. Originally published in JMIR Human