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Unreliable Results (unreliable + result)
Selected AbstractsDifficulties in diagnosing small round cell tumours of childhood from fine needle aspiration cytology samplesCYTOPATHOLOGY, Issue 2 2008ekArticle first published online: 18 MAR 200, iva Pohar-Marin There are four basic reasons for the difficulties in diagnosing small round cell tumours (SRCT) in childhood from fine needle aspiration cytology (FNAC) samples. First, SRCTs are rare and it is difficult for cytopathologists to obtain enough experience for rendering reliable diagnoses. Second, SRCTs are morphologically very similar. Third, many SRCTs do not have specific antigens which could be demonstrated with immunocytochemistry (ICC) or they lose them when poorly differentiated. In addition, cross reactivity exists between some SRCTs. Unstandardized performance of ICC also contributes to the difficulties due to unreliable results. Fourth, suboptimal FNAC samples add additional pitfalls. The latter may be due to partly degenerate samples or to unrepresentative ones in cases where a SRCT is a heterologous component of another nosological entity. Lymphoma, neuroblastoma, nephroblastoma, Ewing's tumour/primitive neuroendocrine tumours and rhabdomyosarcoma are discussed in detail, while other less common SRCTs are mentioned as differential diagnoses when appropriate. The use of cytogenetic and molecular techniques for differentiating between certain SRCTs is helpful in some doubtful cases. However, there are still problems in the use of these techniques, especially their cost which may delay their being introduced in every cytopathology laboratory. [source] A robust PCR method for high-dimensional regressorsJOURNAL OF CHEMOMETRICS, Issue 8-9 2003Mia Hubert Abstract We consider the multivariate calibration model which assumes that the concentrations of several constituents of a sample are linearly related to its spectrum. Principal component regression (PCR) is widely used for the estimation of the regression parameters in this model. In the classical approach it combines principal component analysis (PCA) on the regressors with least squares regression. However, both stages yield very unreliable results when the data set contains outlying observations. We present a robust PCR (RPCR) method which also consists of two parts. First we apply a robust PCA method for high-dimensional data on the regressors, then we regress the response variables on the scores using a robust regression method. A robust RMSECV value and a robust R2 value are proposed as exploratory tools to select the number of principal components. The prediction error is also estimated in a robust way. Moreover, we introduce several diagnostic plots which are helpful to visualize and classify the outliers. The robustness of RPCR is demonstrated through simulations and the analysis of a real data set. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Characterizing, Propagating, and Analyzing Uncertainty in Life-Cycle Assessment: A Survey of Quantitative ApproachesJOURNAL OF INDUSTRIAL ECOLOGY, Issue 1 2007Shannon M. Lloyd Summary Life-cycle assessment (LCA) practitioners build models to quantify resource consumption, environmental releases, and potential environmental and human health impacts of product systems. Most often, practitioners define a model structure, assign a single value to each parameter, and build deterministic models to approximate environmental outcomes. This approach fails to capture the variability and uncertainty inherent in LCA. To make good decisions, decision makers need to understand the uncertainty in and divergence between LCA outcomes for different product systems. Several approaches for conducting LCA under uncertainty have been proposed and implemented. For example, Monte Carlo simulation and fuzzy set theory have been applied in a limited number of LCA studies. These approaches are well understood and are generally accepted in quantitative decision analysis. But they do not guarantee reliable outcomes. A survey of approaches used to incorporate quantitative uncertainty analysis into LCA is presented. The suitability of each approach for providing reliable outcomes and enabling better decisions is discussed. Approaches that may lead to overconfident or unreliable results are discussed and guidance for improving uncertainty analysis in LCA is provided. [source] Evaluation of hydrate-screening methodsJOURNAL OF PHARMACEUTICAL SCIENCES, Issue 7 2008Yong Cui Abstract The purpose of this work is to evaluate the effectiveness and reliability of several common hydrate-screening techniques, and to provide guidelines for designing hydrate-screening programs for new drug candidates. Ten hydrate-forming compounds were selected as model compounds and six hydrate-screening approaches were applied to these compounds in an effort to generate their hydrate forms. The results prove that no screening approach is universally effective in finding hydrates for small organic compounds. Rather, a combination of different methods should be used to improve screening reliability. Among the approaches tested, the dynamic water vapor sorption/desorption isotherm (DVI) method and storage under high humidity (HH) yielded 60,70% success ratios, the lowest among all techniques studied. The risk of false negatives arises in particular for nonhygroscopic compounds. On the other hand, both slurry in water (Slurry) and temperature cycling of aqueous suspension (TCS) showed high success rates (90%) with some exceptions. The mixed solvent systems (MSS) procedure also achieved high success rates (90%), and was found to be more suitable for water-insoluble compounds. For water-soluble compounds, MSS may not be the best approach because recrystallization is difficult in solutions with high water activity. Finally, vapor diffusion (VD) yielded a reasonably high success ratio in finding hydrates (80%). However, this method suffers from experimental difficulty and unreliable results for either highly water-soluble or water-insoluble compounds. This study indicates that a reliable hydrate-screening strategy should take into consideration the solubility and hygroscopicity of the compounds studied. A combination of the Slurry or TCS method with the MSS procedure could provide a screening strategy with reasonable reliability. © 2007 Wiley-Liss, Inc. and the American Pharmacists Association J Pharm Sci 97:2730,2744, 2008 [source] | ||||||||||