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Practical Test (practical + test)

Distribution by Scientific Domains

Medical Sciences	33%
Education	33%

Selected Abstracts

Practical tests for clinical diagnosis of kidney allograft dysfunction

CLINICAL TRANSPLANTATION, Issue 2008
Masayoshi Miura
Abstract:, Graft dysfunction after renal transplant occurs due to a variety of causes. Graft biopsy is a mainstay in the diagnosis of graft dysfunction, including rejection, infection, glomerulonephritis and drug toxicity. Clinical tests including regular laboratory tests, antibody tests and imaging studies, however, are also important in the process of diagnosis. The possible causes of graft dysfunction are different depending on the period after transplantation. Pre-transplant donor factors may also affect the early graft function. Perioperative graft dysfunction is mainly related to hemodynamic factors and surgical complications. Early acute rejection may occur in immunologically high-risk cases. Later graft dysfunction may be related to infection, acute and chronic rejection or drug toxicity. Clinical tests to differentiate these factors are discussed in this paper. [source]

The SAXS/WAXS software system of the DUBBLE CRG beamline at the ESRF

JOURNAL OF APPLIED CRYSTALLOGRAPHY, Issue 4 2001
E. Homan
The small/wide-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS/WAXS) system on the DUBBLE CRG beamline at the ESRF is used for both static and time-resolved measurements. The integrated system developed for control and data reduction deals effectively with the high rates of incoming data from the different detector systems, as well as the presentation of results for the user. To ensure that the data may be used directly by a wide range of packages, they may be recorded in a number of output formats, thus serving as a practical test bed where developing standards may be compared and contrasted. The software system implements proposals raised at the canSAS meetings to promote a limited set of standard data formats for small-angle scattering studies. The system presented can cope with a volume of results in excess of 10,Gbytes of data per experiment and shows the advantages achieved by minimizing the dependence on raw-data formats. [source]

Developing students' ability to ask more and better questions resulting from inquiry-type chemistry laboratories

JOURNAL OF RESEARCH IN SCIENCE TEACHING, Issue 7 2005
Avi Hofstein
This study focuses on the ability of high-school chemistry students, who learn chemistry through the inquiry approach, to ask meaningful and scientifically sound questions. We investigated (a) the ability of students to ask questions related to their observations and findings in an inquiry-type experiment (a practical test) and (b) the ability of students to ask questions after critically reading a scientific article. The student population consisted of two groups: an inquiry-laboratory group (experimental group) and a traditional laboratory-type group (control group). The three common features investigated were (a) the number of questions that were asked by each of the students, (b) the cognitive level of the questions, and (c) the nature of the questions that were chosen by the students, for the purpose of further investigation. Importantly, it was found that students in the inquiry group who had experience in asking questions in the chemistry laboratory outperformed the control grouping in their ability to ask more and better questions. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Res Sci Teach 42: 791,806, 2005 [source]

Matching/mismatching revisited: an empirical study of learning and teaching styles

BRITISH JOURNAL OF EDUCATIONAL TECHNOLOGY, Issue 1 2001
Nigel Ford
This paper presents results of a research project that explored the relationship between matching and mismatching instructional presentation style (breadth-first and depth-first) with students' cognitive style (field-dependence/-independence) in a computer-based learning environment. 73 postgraduate students were asked to create Web pages using HTML, using instructional materials that were either matched or mismatched with their cognitive styles. Significant differences in performance on a multiple choice test of conceptual knowledge were found for students learning in matched and mismatched conditions. Performance in matched conditions was significantly superior to that in mismatched conditions. However, significant effects were found for gender, matching mainly affecting male students. Performance on a practical test of Web page creation was not linked to matching or mismatching, but was linked to an interaction between gender and instructional presentation style. The findings provide support for the notion that matching and mismatching can have significant effects on learning outcomes. The paper concludes with suggestions for further research. [source]

Comprehensive cognitive neurological assessment in stroke

ACTA NEUROLOGICA SCANDINAVICA, Issue 3 2009
M. Hoffmann
Background,,, Cognitive syndromes (CS) after stroke may be important to measure and monitor for management and emerging therapies. Aim,,, To incorporate known behavioral neurological and neuropsychiatric syndromes into a bedside cognitive assessment in patients with stroke. Methods,,, A validated cognitive examination (comprehensive cognitive neurological test in stroke, Coconuts) was administered during the first month of stroke presentation and analyzed according to five large-scale networks for cognition and correlated with neuropsychological tests. Validity testing of the test was performed for overall sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value and negative predictive value to stroke in comparison with MRI diagnosis of stroke as well as discriminant validity, construct validity and inter-rater reliability. Results,,, Overall the sensitivity of the Coconuts scale was 91% and specificity 35%, PPV 88% and NPV 41% vs stroke lesions using MRI. Cognitive syndrome frequencies: frontal network syndrome frequency was 908/1796 (51%), left hemisphere network syndrome frequency was 646/1796 (36%), right hemisphere network included 275/1796 (15.3%), occipitotemporal network for complex visual processing 107/1796 (6%), the hippocampal limbic network for amnesias and emotional disorders 397/1796 (22%) and miscellaneous network syndromes 481/1796 (27%). Conclusion,,, The Coconuts is a valid and practical test of a comprehensive array of known behavioral neurological and neuropsychiatric syndromes in patients with stroke. [source]

Non-smooth structured control design with application to PID loop-shaping of a process

INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ROBUST AND NONLINEAR CONTROL, Issue 14 2007
Pierre Apkarian
Abstract Feedback controllers with specific structure arise frequently in applications because they are easily apprehended by design engineers and facilitate on-board implementations and re-tuning. This work is dedicated to H, synthesis with structured controllers. In this context, straightforward application of traditional synthesis techniques fails, which explains why only a few ad hoc methods have been developed over the years. In response, we propose a more systematic way to design H, optimal controllers with fixed structure using local optimization techniques. Our approach addresses in principle all those controller structures which can be built into mathematical programming constraints. We apply non-smooth optimization techniques to compute locally optimal solutions, and provide practical tests for descent and optimality. In the experimental part we apply our technique to H, loop-shaping proportional integral derivative (PID) controllers for MIMO systems and demonstrate its use for PID control of a chemical process. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source]