Home About us Contact | |||
Fit
Kinds of Fit Terms modified by Fit Selected AbstractsDivergent and Linear Solid-Phase Synthesis of PNA Containing Thiazole Orange as Artificial BaseEUROPEAN JOURNAL OF ORGANIC CHEMISTRY, Issue 15 2005Dilip V. Jarikote Abstract Fluorescent nucleobase surrogates provide nucleic acids with interesting properties. We have recently introduced thiazole orange as base surrogate into PNA and found that the so-called FIT (Forced Intercalation of Thiazole orange) PNA probes signal hybridization by enhancements of fluorescence. Common approaches of modifying nucleobases or introducing nucleobase surrogates draw upon the usage of monomer building blocks that have been synthesized in solution phase. The need to prefabricate a base-modified building block can hold up progress if several base modifications or base surrogates are to be evaluated. Herein, a method for divergent solid-phase synthesis is presented that serves the purpose to facilitate the screening for base surrogates that fluoresce upon hybridization. An Fmoc/Aloc-protected submonomer allowed the application of commonly used Fmoc-based solid-phase synthesis protocols while removal of the fully orthogonal Aloc group enabled the on-resin introduction of base surrogates after the linear chain assembly had been completed. The divergent solid-phase synthesis strategy is automatable, gives overall yields matching those of linear solid-phase synthesis and, most importantly, provides rapid access to any kind of base-modified PNA. (© Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, 69451 Weinheim, Germany, 2005) [source] Higher order explicit time integration schemes for Maxwell's equationsINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF NUMERICAL MODELLING: ELECTRONIC NETWORKS, DEVICES AND FIELDS, Issue 5-6 2002Holger Spachmann Abstract The finite integration technique (FIT) is an efficient and universal method for solving a wide range of problems in computational electrodynamics. The conventional formulation in time-domain (FITD) has a second-order accuracy with respect to spatial and temporal discretization and is computationally equivalent with the well-known finite difference time-domain (FDTD) scheme. The dispersive character of the second-order spatial operators and temporal integration schemes limits the problem size to electrically small structures. In contrast higher-order approaches result not only in low-dispersive schemes with modified stability conditions but also higher computational costs. In this paper, a general framework of explicit Runge,Kutta and leap-frog integrators of arbitrary orders N is derived. The powerful root-locus method derived from general system theory forms the basis of the theoretical mainframe for analysing convergence, stability and dispersion characteristics of the proposed integrators. As it is clearly stated, the second- and fourth-order leap-frog scheme are highly preferable in comparison to any other higher order Runge,Kutta or leap-frog scheme concerning stability, efficiency and energy conservation. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Functional Incidental Training: A Randomized, Controlled, Crossover Trial in Veterans Affairs Nursing HomesJOURNAL OF AMERICAN GERIATRICS SOCIETY, Issue 7 2005Joseph G. Ouslander MD Objectives: To test the effects of a rehabilitative intervention directed at continence, mobility, endurance, and strength (Functional Incidental Training (FIT)) in older patients in Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) nursing homes. Design: Randomized, controlled, crossover trial. Setting: Four VA nursing homes. Participants: All 528 patients in the nursing homes were screened; 178 were eligible, and 107 were randomized to an immediate intervention group (Group 1; n=52) and a delayed intervention group (Group 2; n=55). Intervention: Trained research staff provided the FIT intervention, which included prompted voiding combined with individualized, functionally oriented endurance and strength-training exercises offered four times per day, 5 days per week, for 8 weeks. Group 1 received the intervention while Group 2 served as a control group; then Group 2 received the intervention while Group 1 crossed over to no intervention. A total of 64 subjects completed the intervention phase of the trial. Measurements: Timed measures of walking or wheeling a wheelchair (mobility), sit-to-stand exercises, independence in locomotion and toileting as assessed using the Functional Independence Measure (FIM), one-repetition maximum weight for several measures of upper and lower body strength, frequency of urine and stool incontinence, and appropriate toileting ratios. Results: There was a significant effect of the FIT intervention on virtually all measures of endurance, strength, and urinary incontinence but not on the FIM for locomotion or toileting. The effects of FIT were observed when Group 1 received the intervention and was compared with the control group and when Group 2 crossed over to the intervention. Group 1 deteriorated in all measures during the 8-week crossover period. Within-person comparisons also demonstrated significant effects on all measures in the 64 participants who completed the intervention; 43 (67%) of these participants were "responders" based on maintenance or improvement in at least one measure of endurance, strength, and urinary incontinence. No adverse events related to FIT occurred during the study period. Conclusion: FIT improves endurance, strength, and urinary incontinence in older patients residing in VA nursing homes. Translating these positive benefits achieved under research conditions into practice will be challenging because of the implications of the intervention for staff workload and thereby the costs of care. [source] Pretreatment Levels of Bone Turnover and the Antifracture Efficacy of Alendronate: The Fracture Intervention TrialJOURNAL OF BONE AND MINERAL RESEARCH, Issue 2 2006Douglas C Bauer MD Abstract The influence of pretreatment bone turnover on alendronate efficacy is not known. In the FIT, we examined the effect of pretreatment bone turnover on the antifracture efficacy of daily alendronate given to postmenopausal women. The nonspine fracture efficacy of alendronate was significantly greater among both osteoporotic and nonosteoporotic women with higher baseline levels of the bone formation marker PINP. Introduction: Previous trials have shown that high bone turnover is associated with greater increases in BMD among bisphosphonate-treated women. The influence of pretreatment bone turnover levels on antifracture efficacy has not been well studied. Materials and Methods: We randomized women 55,80 years of age with femoral neck BMD T scores , ,1.6 to alendronate (ALN), 5,10 mg/day (n = 3105), or placebo (PBO; n = 3081). At baseline, 3495 women were osteoporotic (femoral neck BMD T score , ,2.5 or prevalent vertebral fracture), and 2689 were not osteoporotic (BMD T score > ,2.5 and no prevalent vertebral fracture). Pretreatment levels of bone-specific alkaline phosphatase (BSALP), N-terminal propeptide of type 1 collagen (PINP), and C-terminal cross-linked telopeptide of type 1 collagen (sCTx) were measured in all participants using archived serum (20% fasting). The risk of incident spine and nonspine fracture was compared in ALN- and PBO-treated subjects stratified into tertiles of baseline bone marker level. Results and Conclusions: During a mean follow-up of 3.2 years, 492 nonspine and 294 morphometric vertebral fractures were documented. Compared with placebo, the reduction in nonspine fractures with ALN treatment differed significantly among those with low, intermediate, and high pretreatment levels of PINP levels (p = 0.03 for trend). For example, among osteoporotic women in the lowest tertile of pretreatment PINP (<41.6 ng/ml), the ALN versus PBO relative hazard for nonspine fracture was 0.88 (95% CI: 0.65, 1.21) compared with a relative hazard of 0.54 (95% CI: 0.39, 0.74) among those in the highest tertile of PINP (>56.8 ng/ml). Results were similar among women without osteoporosis at baseline. Although they did not reach statistical significance, similar trends were observed with baseline levels of BSALP. Conversely, spine fracture treatment efficacy among osteoporotic women did not differ significantly according to pretreatment marker levels. Spine fracture treatment efficacy among nonosteoporotic women was related to baseline BSALP (p = 0.05 for trend). In summary, alendronate nonspine fracture efficacy is greater among both osteoporotic and nonosteoporotic women with high pretreatment PINP. If confirmed in other studies, these findings suggest that bisphosphonate treatment may be most effective in women with elevated bone turnover. [source] A comparison of the acceptance of immunochemical faecal occult blood test and colonoscopy in colorectal cancer screening: a prospective study among ChineseALIMENTARY PHARMACOLOGY & THERAPEUTICS, Issue 1 2010M. C. S. Wong Aliment Pharmacol Ther 2010; 32: 74,82 Summary Background, Preferences to choose immunochemical faecal occult blood test (FIT) and colonoscopy as colorectal cancer (CRC) screening modalities among asymptomatic Chinese subjects remain unknown. Aim, To evaluate the preference of choosing colonoscopy vs. FIT among CRC screening participants. Methods, From a community-based CRC screening programme for asymptomatic Hong Kong Chinese aged 50,70 years, participants attended standardized educational sessions and chose the options of annual FIT for 5 years or direct colonoscopy once. Factors associated with choosing colonoscopy were evaluated by multivariate regression analysis. Results, Among 3430 participants [mean age 56.8 years (s.d. 5.0); female 55.1%, male 44.9%], 51.3% chose colonoscopy and 48.7% chose FIT. Older participants (65,70 years) were less likely to choose colonoscopy [adjusted odds ratio (aOR) 0.731, P = 0.041]. Subjects who chose colonoscopy were those disagreed screening would lead to discomfort (aOR 1.356, P < 0.001), had relatives or friends who had CRC (first degree relatives aOR 1.679, P < 0.001; second degree relatives aOR 1.304, P = 0.019; friends or others aOR 1.252, P = 0.026) and those who self-perceived their health as poor (aOR 1.529, P = 0.025). Conclusions, Faecal occult blood test and direct colonoscopy were equally preferable to Chinese. Colonoscopy was preferred among the younger subjects, those with positive family history of CRC and self-perceived poor health status. [source] Colonoscopy-controlled intra-individual comparisons to screen relevant neoplasia: faecal immunochemical test vs. guaiac-based faecal occult blood testALIMENTARY PHARMACOLOGY & THERAPEUTICS, Issue 3 2010F. A. OORT Aliment Pharmacol Ther,31, 432,439 Summary Background, Guaiac-based faecal occult blood tests (g-FOBTs) are most commonly used in colorectal cancer (CRC) screening programmes. Faecal immunochemical tests (FITs) are thought to be superior. Aim, To compare performance of a g-FOBT and a quantitative FIT for detection of CRCs and advanced adenomas in a colonoscopy-controlled population. Methods, We assessed sensitivity and specificity of both FIT (OC-sensor) and g-FOBT (Hemoccult-II) prior to patients' scheduled colonoscopies. Results, Of the 62 invasive cancers detected in 1821 individuals, g-FOBT was positive in 46 and FIT in 54 (74.2% vs. 87.1%, P = 0.02). Among 194 patients with advanced adenomas, g-FOBT was positive in 35 and FIT in 69 (18.0% vs. 35.6%, P < 0.001). Sensitivity for screen relevant tumours (197 advanced adenomas and 28 stage I or II cancers) was 23.0% for g-FOBT and 40.5% for FIT (P < 0.001). Specificity of g-FOBT compared to FIT for the detection of cancer was 95.7% vs. 91.0%, P < 0.001) and for advanced adenomas (97.4% vs. 94.2%, P < 0.001). Conclusions Faecal immunochemical test is more sensitive for CRC and advanced adenomas. Sensitivity of FIT for screen relevant tumours, early-stage cancers and advanced adenomas, is significantly higher. Specificity of g-FOBT is higher compared with FIT. [source] Microstrip-fed slot antennas backed by a very thin cavityMICROWAVE AND OPTICAL TECHNOLOGY LETTERS, Issue 1 2007Andrea Vallecchi Abstract Slot antennas with a backing cavity for unidirectional radiation are investigated with the aim of achieving a thin structure capable of reasonably broadband operation. By tuning together the slot length and the cavity cross-section, a very low-profile cavity-backed slot (CBS) is demonstrated. The cavity thickness of this slot antenna is about 10 times smaller than conventional one-quarter wavelength cavities, which would allow constructing this antenna even with standard cost-effective multilayer planar technology. The high gain and fairly wideband operation are the major advantages of the proposed configuration, which features a bandwidth of about 10% at a center frequency of 1.8 GHz with radiation efficiency in excess of 80%. Measured data are presented and compared with simulation results obtained by both the method of moments (MoM) and the finite integration technique (FIT). © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Microwave Opt Technol Lett 49: 247,250, 2007; Published online in Wiley InterScience (www.interscience.wiley.com). DOI 10.1002/mop.22073 [source] IS EAST ASIA FIT FOR AN OPTIMUM CURRENCY AREA?THE DEVELOPING ECONOMIES, Issue 3 2006AN ASSESSMENT OF THE ECONOMIC FEASIBILITY OF A HIGHER DEGREE OF MONETARY COOPERATION IN EAST ASIA F42; N15 This paper attempts to make a contribution to the recent search for a suitable assessment of the economic feasibility of a higher degree of monetary cooperation in East Asia. By using a structural vector autoregression approach as well as a generalized purchasing power parity approach, we find that a larger group of appropriately selected East Asian economies does satisfy the macroeconomic conditions for forming an Optimum Currency Area (OCA). The East Asian group consists of four ASEAN countries (Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, and Thailand) and four Northeast Asian economies (Hong Kong SAR, Japan, Republic of Korea, and Taiwan). This finding presents a striking contrast to the existing research results whose policy recommendation has generally been that countries in East Asia should start with a smaller subgroup currency area. It is time that many East Asian economies as a region made a serious effort to pursue a higher degree of monetary cooperation among themselves for forming an OCA. [source] Cytokinins negatively regulate the root iron uptake machinery in Arabidopsis through a growth-dependent pathwayTHE PLANT JOURNAL, Issue 2 2008Mathilde Séguéla Summary Plants display a number of biochemical and developmental responses to low iron availability in order to increase iron uptake from the soil. The ferric-chelate reductase FRO2 and the ferrous iron transporter IRT1 control iron entry from the soil into the root epidermis. In Arabidopsis, expression of IRT1 and FRO2 is tightly controlled to maintain iron homeostasis, and involves local and long-distance signals, as well as transcriptional and post-transcriptional events. FIT encodes a putative basic helix-loop-helix (bHLH) transcription factor that regulates iron uptake responses in Arabidopsis. Here, we uncover a new regulation of the root iron uptake genes. We show that IRT1, FRO2 and FIT are repressed by the exogenous addition of cytokinins (CKs), and that this repression acts at the level of transcript accumulation, and depends on the AHK3 and CRE1 CK receptors. The CKs and iron-deficiency signals act through distinct pathways to regulate the soil iron uptake genes, as (i) CK repression is independent of the iron status, (ii) IRT1 and FRO2 downregulation is unchanged in a fit loss-of-function mutant, indicating that FIT does not mediate CK repression, and (iii) the iron-regulated genes AtNRAMP3 and AtNRAMP4 are not downregulated by CKs. We show that root growth-inhibitory conditions, such as abiotic stresses (mannitol, NaCl) and hormonal treatments (auxin, abscissic acid), repress the iron starvation response genes. We propose that CKs control the root iron uptake machinery through a root growth dependent pathway in order to adapt nutrient uptake to the demand of the plant. [source] Absence of population substructuring in Zimbabwe chicken ecotypes inferred using microsatellite analysisANIMAL GENETICS, Issue 4 2007F. C. Muchadeyi Summary The objective of this study was to investigate the population structure of village chickens found in the five agro-ecological zones of Zimbabwe. Twenty-nine microsatellites were genotyped for chickens randomly selected from 13 populations, including the five eco-zones of Zimbabwe (n = 238), Malawi (n = 60), Sudan (n = 48) and six purebred lines (n = 180). A total of 280 alleles were observed in the 13 populations. Forty-eight of these alleles were unique to the Zimbabwe chicken ecotypes. The average number (±SD) of alleles/locus was 9.7 ± 5.10. The overall heterozygote deficiency in the Zimbabwe chickens (FIT ± SE) was 0.08 ± 0.01, over 90% of which was due to within-ecotype deficit (FIS). Small Nei's standard genetic distances ranging from 0.02 to 0.05 were observed between Zimbabwe ecotypes compared with an average of 0.6 between purebred lines. The structure software program was used to cluster individuals to 2 , K , 7 assumed clusters. The most probable clustering was found at K = 6. Ninety-seven of 100 structure runs were identical, in which Malawi, Sudan and purebred lines split out as independent clusters and the five Zimbabwe ecotypes clustered into one population. The within-ecotype marker-estimated kinships (mean = 0.13) differed only slightly from the between-ecotype estimates. Results from this study lead to a rejection of the hypothesis that village chickens are substructured across agro-ecological zones but indicated high genetic diversity within the Zimbabwe chicken population. [source] A NEW FAMILY OF DIVERGENCE MEASURES FOR TESTS OF FITAUSTRALIAN & NEW ZEALAND JOURNAL OF STATISTICS, Issue 2 2010K. Mattheou Summary The aim of this work is to investigate a new family of divergence measures based on the recently introduced Basu, Harris, Hjort and Jones (BHHJ) measure of divergence (Biometrika,85, 549,559). The new family is investigated in connection with hypothesis testing problems, and new test statistics are proposed. Simulations are performed to check the appropriateness of the proposed test statistics. [source] CLONING DATA: GENERATING DATASETS WITH EXACTLY THE SAME MULTIPLE LINEAR REGRESSION FITAUSTRALIAN & NEW ZEALAND JOURNAL OF STATISTICS, Issue 4 2009S. J. Haslett Summary This paper presents a simple computational procedure for generating ,matching' or ,cloning' datasets so that they have exactly the same fitted multiple linear regression equation. The method is simple to implement and provides an alternative to generating datasets under an assumed model. The advantage is that, unlike the case for the straight model-based alternative, parameter estimates from the original data and the generated data do not include any model error. This distinction suggests that ,same fit' procedures may provide a general and useful alternative to model-based procedures, and have a wide range of applications. For example, as well as being useful for teaching, cloned datasets can provide a model-free way of confidentializing data. [source] Stress Regulation in Adolescents: Physiological Reactivity During the Adult Attachment Interview and Conflict InteractionCHILD DEVELOPMENT, Issue 6 2008Mariëlle D. Beijersbergen The current study examined whether adolescents' attachment representations were associated with differences in emotion regulation during the Adult Attachment Interview (AAI; C. George, N. Kaplan, & M. Main, 1996) and during a mother,adolescent conflict interaction task (Family Interaction Task [FIT]; J. P. Allen et al., 2003). Participants were one hundred and fifty-six 14-year-old adolescents. Dismissing adolescents showed less interbeat interval (IBI) reactivity (indicating less stress) during the AAI than secure adolescents. However, during the FIT, dismissing adolescents showed more IBI reactivity. No differences in physiological reactivity were found between individuals with resolved or unresolved loss or trauma during the AAI or FIT. The results indicate that dismissing adolescents may effectively use a defensive strategy during the AAI but less so in direct conflict interaction with their attachment figure. [source] Coping With Missing Attribute Values Based on Closest Fit in Preterm Birth Data: A Rough Set ApproachCOMPUTATIONAL INTELLIGENCE, Issue 3 2001Jerzy W. Grzymala-Busse Data mining is frequently applied to data sets with missing attribute values. A new approach to missing attribute values, called closest fit, is introduced in this paper. In this approach, for a given case (example) with a missing attribute value we search for another case that is as similar as possible to the given case. Cases can be considered as vectors of attribute values. The search is for the case that has as many as possible identical attribute values for symbolic attributes, or as the smallest possible value differences for numerical attributes. There are two possible ways to conduct a search: within the same class (concept) as the case with the missing attribute values, or for the entire set of all cases. For comparison, we also experimented with another approach to missing attribute values, where the missing values are replaced by the most common value of the attribute for symbolic attributes or by the average value for numerical attributes. All algorithms were implemented in the system OOMIS. Our experiments were performed on the preterm birth data sets provided by the Duke University Medical Center. [source] On the capability of revealing the pseudosymmetry of the chalcopyrite-type crystal structureCRYSTAL RESEARCH AND TECHNOLOGY, Issue 3 2008D. Abou-Ras Abstract The tetragonal crystal-structure type of chalcopyrites (chemical formula AIBIIICVI2) is a superstructure of sphalerite type. The c /a ratio differs generally from the ideal value 2, i.e., the crystal structure is pseudocubically distorted. For CuInSe2 and CuGaSe2 thin films, simulations demonstrate that it is theoretically possible to reveal the tetragonality in electron backscatter-diffraction (EBSD) patterns for CuGaSe2, whereas it may not be possible for CuInSe2. EBSD experiments on CuGaSe2 thin films using the "Advanced Fit" band-detection method show that it is possible to extract accurate misorientation-angle distributions from the CuGaSe2 thin film. Pole figures revealing the texture of the CuGaSe2 thin film are shown, which agree well with X-ray texture measurements from the same layer. (© 2008 WILEY -VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim) [source] An Investigation of Localization as an Element of Cognitive Fit in Accounting Model RepresentationsDECISION SCIENCES, Issue 1 2001Cheryl Dunn Abstract Cognitive fit, a correspondence between task and data representation format, has been demonstrated to lead to superior task performance by individual users and has been posited as an explanation for performance differences among users of various problem representations such as tables, graphs, maps, and schematic faces. The current study extends cognitive fit to accounting models and integrates cognitive fit theory with the concept of localization to provide additional evidence for how cognitive fit works. Two accounting model representations are compared in this study, the traditional DCA (Debit-Credit-Account) accounting model and the REA (Resources-Events-Agents) accounting model. Results indicate that the localization of relevant objects or linkages is important in establishing cognitive fit. [source] The Work-Family Interface: Differentiating Balance and FitFAMILY & CONSUMER SCIENCES RESEARCH JOURNAL, Issue 2 2004Maribeth C. Clarke Work-family fit has recently emerged in work and family literature, comparable to work-family balance in that it represents interactions between work and family and yet distinct because it precedes balance and other outcomes. This study explores the relationship between, predictive factors of, and interactive moderating effects of work-family fit and work-family balance. Data are from a survey of business graduate school alumni (n = 387). Findings indicate that fit and balance are two separate constructs. Fit is uniquely predicted by work hours, age, family income, and household labor satisfaction. Balance is uniquely predicted by frequency of family activities. Job satisfaction and marital satisfaction predicted both fit and balance. Analyses suggest that fit is based more on the structural aspects of work-family interactions, whereas balance appears to be based more on the psychological factors. Job satisfaction, marital satisfaction, and frequency of family activities moderated the relationship between fit and balance. [source] The Use of Person,Group Fit for Employment Selection: A Missing Link in Person,Environment FitHUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT, Issue 3 2001James D. Werbel Given an increased emphasis on work teams in organizations, it is important to select applicants based on their ability to make contributions to a given work team. This paper proposes that person,group fit should be useful to select applicants for work teams and suggests that effective use of person,group fit will create both more cohesive work units and more effectively functioning work units. It proposes ways to make valid and reliable assessments of person,group fit that could be used to minimize bias in the selection process. Finally, it addresses several implications of using the person,group fit paradigm for human resource management practice. © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. [source] Is the Political Skill Inventory Fit for Personnel Selection?INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF SELECTION AND ASSESSMENT, Issue 2 2010An Experimental Field Study The political skill inventory (PSI) assesses social effectiveness in organizations by self-reports and has demonstrated strong evidence of validity. It was the purpose of this experimental field study to investigate construct and criterion-related validity of the PSI when used under conditions of personnel selection. In the experimental group (n=102), the instructions asked job incumbents to work on the PSI, a social desirability scale, and a Big-Five personality inventory as if they took part in a personnel selection procedure for a personally very attractive position. Additionally, they were asked to report yearly income. In the control group (n=110), job incumbents were asked to answer the items honestly. As expected, in both conditions, the PSI did not correlate with social desirability, but it correlated positively with extraversion, conscientiousness, and income, and negatively with neuroticism, thus demonstrating construct and incremental criterion-related validity under both conditions. Implications and limitations are discussed. [source] What do People Want from their Jobs?INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF SELECTION AND ASSESSMENT, Issue 1 2010The Big Five, core self-evaluations, work motivation If people are differentially motivated on the basis of individual differences, this implies important practical consequences with respect to staffing decisions and the selection of the right motivational techniques for managers. In two different samples (students facing graduation vs full-time employees), the relationships between personality traits and the preference for job characteristics concerning either extrinsic (job environment) or intrinsic job features (work itself) were investigated. Two personality traits [openness to experience and core self-evaluations (CSE)] were consistently found to be positively related to the preference concerning work characteristics, and CSE showed incremental validity with regard to intrinsic work motivation factors (e.g., experienced meaningfulness, autonomy). Furthermore, age was differentially linked to those job characteristics. The results are discussed with regards to the optimal Person,Job Fit and the practical utility of the personality constructs. [source] Fit for purpose: the relevance of Masters preparation for the professional practice of nursing.JOURNAL OF ADVANCED NURSING, Issue 5 2000A 10-year follow-up study of postgraduate nursing courses in the University of Edinburgh Fit for purpose: the relevance of Masters preparation for the professional practice of nursing. A 10-year follow-up study of postgraduate nursing courses in the University of Edinburgh Continuing education is now recognized as essential if nursing is to develop as a profession. United Kingdom Central Council for Nursing, Midwifery and Health Visiting (UKCC) consultations are currently seeking to establish appropriate preparation for a ,higher level of practice' in the United Kingdom. The relevance of Masters level education to developing professional roles merits examination. To this end the results of a 10-year follow-up study of graduates from the Masters programme at the University of Edinburgh are reported. The sample was the entire cohorts of nurses who graduated with a Masters degree in the academic sessions from 1986 to 1996. A postal questionnaire was designed consisting of mainly closed questions to facilitate coding and analysis but also including some open questions to allow for more qualitative data to be elicited. The findings indicated clearly that the possession of an MSc degree opened up job opportunities and where promotion was not identified, the process of study at a higher level was still perceived as relevant to the work environment. This applied as much to the context of clinical practice as to that of management, education or research. The perceived enhancement of clinical practice from a generic Masters programme was considered a significant finding. Also emerging from the data was an associated sense of personal satisfaction and achievement that related to the acquisition of academic skills and the ultimate reward of Masters status. The concept of personal growth, however, emerged as a distinct entity from that of satisfaction and achievement, relating specifically to the concept of intellectual sharing, the broadening of perspectives and the development of advanced powers of reasoning. [source] Genetic structure and differentiation of 12 African Bos indicus and Bos taurus cattle breeds, inferred from protein and microsatellite polymorphismsJOURNAL OF ANIMAL BREEDING AND GENETICS, Issue 1 2005E.M. Ibeagha-Awemu Summary Level of genetic differentiation, gene flow and genetic structuring of nine Bos indicus and three Bos taurus cattle breeds in Cameroon and Nigeria were estimated using the genetic information from 16 microsatellite, five blood protein and seven milk protein markers. The global heterozygote deficit across all populations (Fit) amounted to 11.7% (p < 0.001). The overall significant (p < 0.001) deficit of heterozygotes because of inbreeding within breeds (Fis) amounted to 6.1%. The breeds were moderately differentiated (Fst = 6%, p < 0.001) with all loci except CSN1S2 contributing significantly to the Fst value. The 12 populations belong to two genetic clusters, a zebu and a taurine cluster. While inferred sub-clusters within the taurine group corresponded extremely well to predefined breed categorizations, no real sub-clusters, corresponding to predefined breeds, existed within the zebu cluster. With the application of prior population information, cluster analysis achieved posterior probabilities from 0.962 to 0.994 of correctly assigning individuals to their rightful populations. High gene flow was evident between the zebu populations. Positive and negative implications of the observed genetic structure of the breeds on their development, improvement and conservation are discussed. The study shows that the breeds are threatened by uncontrolled breeding and therefore are at risk to become genetically uniform in the future. This situation can be avoided by putting in place effective breeding and management measures aimed at limiting uncontrolled mating between the breeds and to preserve special characteristics, genetic as well as breed biodiversity. The first step towards realizing these goals might be to geographically demarcate the breeds. [source] Psychological Stress and Oxidative Damage in Lymphocytes of Aerobically Fit and Unfit Individuals,JOURNAL OF APPLIED BIOBEHAVIORAL RESEARCH, Issue 1 2008Kelly Z. Knickelbein Habitual aerobic exercise has a beneficial effect on many systems of the body, and psychological stress has a negative influence on several of the same systems. One possible pathway is through those systems that account for the detrimental effects of stress; by buffering these harmful effects, exercise may reduce the consequences of stress. This study examined increased resistance of cells to stress-induced oxidative damage as a result of fitness. Forty healthy participants were assigned to either a stress group or a no-stress control group, and measures of stress and oxidative damage were collected. Variation in fitness level across participants was also measured. Oxidative damage increased as a function of stress, but this was not buffered by fitness level. These results should be interpreted with caution because of the small sample size and the limited variability of cardiorespiratory fitness levels in the sample. [source] String Fit: a new structurally oriented X-ray and neutron reflectivity evaluation techniqueJOURNAL OF APPLIED CRYSTALLOGRAPHY, Issue 3 2001Erich Politsch A novel method for the analysis of neutron and X-ray reflectivity measurements is presented. In contrast to existing methods, the new data fitting approach is structurally oriented and therefore only requires information about the chemical structure of studied molecules and no other ad hoc assumptions. Apart from the inversion of reflectivity into scattering length density profile, the inversion of scattering length density profile into molecular arrangement is addressed systematically for non-trivial molecular conformations for the first time. This includes the calculation of structural characteristics, such as radius of gyration or chain order parameters, based on measured reflectograms. Another important option is the possibility to evaluate simultaneously neutron and X-ray reflectograms of a given sample. For better convergence, especially for complex simultaneous evaluations, an effective extension of the normally used least-squares deviation function is introduced. Different simulated molecular ensembles are used to illustrate the features of the new approach; typically, excellent agreement between the simulated starting and final deduced data sets is achieved. [source] Making the Punishment Fit the Crime and the Criminal: Attributions of Dangerousness as a Mediator of Liability,JOURNAL OF APPLIED SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY, Issue 6 2000Catherine A. Sanderson This research examines how individuals use information regarding characteristics of crimes (e. g., crime severity) and characteristics of the offender (e. g, prior criminal record) to form an impression of the criminal as dangerous to society, and to make liability judgments. Two studies presented college students and community members with crime scenarios and asked for ratings of crime severity, likelihood of recidivism, perceived dangerousness of the offender, and liability. Type of crime, severity. and likelihood of recidivism significantly predicted both liability and perceived dangerousness. Further more, in crimes against people only, the effects of severity and recidivism on liability were partially mediated by individuals' perceptions of the offender as criminally dangerous. The discussion examines the implications of these findings for attribution theory and sentencing in the criminal-justice system. [source] With Pulmonary Vein Isolation for Paroxysmal Atrial Fibrillation Ablation, One Size Does Not Fit AllJOURNAL OF CARDIOVASCULAR ELECTROPHYSIOLOGY, Issue 10 2002David E. Haines M.D. [source] Measures of Fit for Rational Expectations ModelsJOURNAL OF ECONOMIC SURVEYS, Issue 3 2002Tom Engsted This survey provides a detailed description of some of the recent theoretical and empirical literature on rational expectations econometrics. The survey pays special attention to non,stationarity of the data, and to the various methods for evaluating rational expectations models that have been developed as alternatives to the classical statistical approach of testing overidentifying restrictions. These methods have become very popular and widely used in empirical research. We provide an illustration using Danish stock market data, and we summarize the many results obtained recently using these measures in areas as diverse as stock prices, the term structure of interest rates, exchange rates, consumption and saving, the balance of payments, tax,smoothing, hyperinflation, and linear quadratic adjustment cost models for inventories, labour demand, and money demand. [source] Model-Free CUSUM Methods for Person FitJOURNAL OF EDUCATIONAL MEASUREMENT, Issue 4 2009Ronald D. Armstrong This article demonstrates the use of a new class of model-free cumulative sum (CUSUM) statistics to detect person fit given the responses to a linear test. The fundamental statistic being accumulated is the likelihood ratio of two probabilities. The detection performance of this CUSUM scheme is compared to other model-free person-fit statistics found in the literature as well as an adaptation of another CUSUM approach. The study used both simulated responses and real response data from a large-scale standardized admission test. [source] Assessing Goodness of Fit of Item Response Theory Models: A Comparison of Traditional and Alternative ProceduresJOURNAL OF EDUCATIONAL MEASUREMENT, Issue 4 2003Clement A. Stone Testing the goodness of fit of item response theory (IRT) models is relevant to validating IRT models, and new procedures have been proposed. These alternatives compare observed and expected response frequencies conditional on observed total scores, and use posterior probabilities for responses across , levels rather than cross-classifying examinees using point estimates of , and score responses. This research compared these alternatives with regard to their methods, properties (Type 1 error rates and empirical power), available research, and practical issues (computational demands, treatment of missing data, effects of sample size and sparse data, and available computer programs). Different advantages and disadvantages related to these characteristics are discussed. A simulation study provided additional information about empirical power and Type 1 error rates. [source] Corporate Reputation and Social Performance: The Importance of FitJOURNAL OF MANAGEMENT STUDIES, Issue 3 2006Stephen J. Brammer abstract Utilizing data on a sample of large firms, we estimate a model of corporate reputation. We find reputation, derived from the assessments of managers and market analysts, to be determined by a firm's social performance, financial performance, market risk, the extent of long-term institutional ownership, and the nature of its business activities. Furthermore, the reputational effect of social performance is found to vary both across sectors, and within sectors across the various types of social performance. Specifically, our results demonstrate the need to achieve a ,fit' among the types of corporate social performance undertaken and the firm's stakeholder environment. For example, a strong record of environmental performance may enhance or damage reputation depending on whether the firm's activities ,fit' with environmental concerns in the eyes of stakeholders. [source] |