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Collected Data (collected + data)
Selected AbstractsThe Italian experience in social reporting: an empirical analysisCORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY AND ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT, Issue 3 2006Davide Secchi Abstract This analysis tries to discover an empirical validation to back up the hypothesis that the Italian phenomenon of social reporting has changed with regard to the past and is growing in importance. After considering the evolution of Italian literature on the issue, the paper tries to find connections between this literature and social reporting practices. Empirical findings are based on 62 Italian social reports. The paper tries to answer three questions: (a) what kind of organization publishes social reports; (b) what are the main differences, if any, between different reports belonging to diverse organizations; (c) which are the leading models. Social reports have been sorted according to three main issues: report objectives, emerging models and stakeholder mapping. Collected data suggest that there is a common ground for organizations in socially responsible behaviour, but also that this common ground fits the need of every single organization. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and ERP Environment. [source] Environmental management in large-scale building projects,learning from Hammarby SjöstadCORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY AND ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT, Issue 4 2002Rolf Johansson In an old industrial and harbour area of Stockholm, a new city for 30 000 people will be built in the next ten years. The Hammarby Sjöstad project is unique in its size and municipal organization as well as in its ambitious environmental objectives. In a case study based on interviews and document analysis, the environmental management process of this project is researched. The City of Stockholm will follow up the compliance with set goals; our study is a qualitative one focusing on the management process. We develop concepts and models as an aid for municipal management of future construction projects. Many factors outside the formal ones are considered important. Data is structured chronologically as events and from a stakeholder perspective, including the City, the developers and the contractors. The main focus is, however, on the City's Project Management Team. Collected data is furthermore analysed with the aid of key concepts, derived from organization theory, planning and construction practice and as suggested by the data. Preliminary results indicate that the continued study of informal means of control is just as important as that of the formal ones, and that identifying key situations and tools for environmental management should be in focus for the rest of the research study. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. and ERP Environment [source] MNS16A minisatellite genotypes in relation to risk of glioma and meningioma and to glioblastoma outcomeINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF CANCER, Issue 4 2009Ulrika Andersson Abstract The human telomerase reverse transcriptase (hTERT) gene is upregulated in a majority of malignant tumours. A variable tandem repeat, MNS16A, has been reported to be of functional significance for hTERT expression. Published data on the clinical relevance of MNS16A variants in brain tumours have been contradictory. The present population-based study in the Nordic countries and the United Kingdom evaluated brain-tumour risk and survival in relation to MNS16A minisatellite variants in 648 glioma cases, 473 meningioma cases and 1,359 age, sex and geographically matched controls. By PCR-based genotyping all study subjects with fragments of 240 or 271 bp were judged as having short (S) alleles and subjects with 299 or 331 bp fragments as having long (L) alleles. Relative risk of glioma or meningioma was estimated with logistic regression adjusting for age, sex and country. Overall survival was analysed using Kaplan,Meier estimates and equality of survival distributions using the log-rank test and Cox proportional hazard ratios. The MNS16A genotype was not associated with risk of occurrence of glioma, glioblastoma (GBM) or meningioma. For GBM there were median survivals of 15.3, 11.0 and 10.7 months for the LL, LS and SS genotypes, respectively; the hazard ratio for having the LS genotype compared with the LL was significantly increased HR 2.44 (1.56,3.82) and having the SS genotype versus the LL was nonsignificantly increased HR 1.46 (0.81,2.61). When comparing the LL versus having one of the potentially functional variants LS and SS, the HR was 2.10 (1.41,3.1). However, functionality was not supported as there was no trend towards increasing HR with number of S alleles. Collected data from our and previous studies regarding both risk and survival for the MNS16A genotypes are contradictory and warrant further investigations. © 2009 UICC [source] Knowledge of residual curarization: an Italian surveyACTA ANAESTHESIOLOGICA SCANDINAVICA, Issue 3 2010P. DI MARCO Background: The use of neuromuscular blocking agents (NMBAs) is widespread in anesthetic practice; little is known about the current use of these drugs in Italy. This survey was conducted to obtain information about the most commonly used clinical tests and the train-of-four (TOF) ratios that are considered as being reliable for assessing recovery from neuromuscular blockade at the end of anesthesia and the estimated occurrence rates of post-operative paralysis in Italian hospitals. Methods: The questionnaire was given to Italian anesthesiologists attending the 62nd National Congress of the Italian Society of Anesthesia, Analgesia and Intensive Therapy. Collected data were stratified by age and the total number of surgical procedures performed in the hospitals concerned. Results: Seven hundred and fifty-four correctly compiled questionnaires were collected (response rate 88.7%). Seventy three percent of the respondents only used clinical tests for monitoring the level of neuromuscular blockade. The main clinical tests cited for the evaluation of residual paralysis were keeping the head lifted up for 5 s, protruding the tongue and opening the eyes. TOF was used by 35% of the respondents on a routine basis. Only 24% of the interviewed anesthesiologists reported that before extubation, a TOF ratio of at least 0.9 should be reached. Conclusions: Most Italian anesthetists assess the recovery from neuromuscular blockade only by clinical signs. There is poor awareness about the inability of such techniques to indicate even a significant amount of residual neuromuscular block. A more extensive use of quantitative instrumental monitoring is required for the more rational use of NMBAs. [source] Forest progression modes in littoral Congo, Central Atlantic AfricaJOURNAL OF BIOGEOGRAPHY, Issue 9 2004Charly Favier Abstract Aim, To understand the persistence of a forest,savanna mosaic in places where rainfall data suggest that forest take-over should take place. To study the various modes of forest encroachment, and the role of human activities to hamper it. Location, Data were collected on several forest,savanna ecotones in the coastal region of the Republic of Congo. The sites were chosen to illustrate the differing principal modes of forest expansion, corresponding to different levels of anthropic pressure. Methods, The study sites were situated on five transects perpendicular to the ecotone (total sampled area: 1.7 ha) and 10 forest clumps in savanna (with diameters from 3 to 20 m). Along the transects botanical identification, diameter measurement and cartography were performed, while leaf area index was measured at a high resolution (every metre) along two of them. Collected data were analysed using a continuous quantification approach, which is much more useful than classical quadrat analysis. Time calibration of progression rates was performed using a simple model of the growth of the characteristic pioneer species, Aucoumea klaineana. Results, The two main different modes are reflected in different successional patterns. The edge diffusion is slow (its rate is evaluated to c. 1 m year,1) and is characterized by a progressive increase in large-diameter tree density and shade-tolerant tree density away from the ecotone. Conversely, savanna to forest phase transition by coalescence of clumps exhibits high tree density remnants distributed in established forest. The composition of these remnants is compatible with that of the forest clumps in savannas. Main conclusions, Three functional groups of pioneer trees are distinguished: some occupy the edge (edge pioneer), others establish clumps of forest in savanna (clump pioneers) and the longer-living A. klaineana ensures the transition to ,mature' forest. The two different observed patterns (linear edge progression and clump coalescence) can be understood with the use of a model of forest,savanna dynamics, ,FORSAT'. The two control parameters are the annual rainfall and the frequency of man-made fires in each savanna. In particular, an increase in the fire frequency can lead to a shift from the coalescence regime to the edge progression one. [source] Efficacy and tolerability of peginterferon alfa-2a or alfa-2b plus ribavirin in the daily routine treatment of patients with chronic hepatitis C in Germany: The PRACTICE StudyJOURNAL OF VIRAL HEPATITIS, Issue 7 2010T. Witthoeft Summary., In randomized clinical trials, treatment with peginterferon plus ribavirin (RBV) results in a sustained virological response (SVR) in around half of hepatitis C virus genotype 1-infected and 80% of genotype 2/3-infected individuals. This study aimed to evaluate efficacy and tolerability of peginterferon alfa-2a plus RBV compared with peginterferon alfa-2b plus RBV for the treatment of chronic hepatitis C in routine clinical practice. The intent-to-treat cohort consisted of 3414 patients treated with either peginterferon alfa-2a plus RBV (Group A) or peginterferon alfa-2b plus RBV (Group B) in 23 centres participating in the large, multicentre, observational PRACTICE study. Collected data included baseline characteristics, treatment regimen, RBV dose and outcome. Rates of early virological response, end of treatment response and SVR were 76.6%, 75.7% and 52.9% in Group A, and 70.2%, 65.6% and 50.5% in Group B, respectively. In patients matched by baseline parameters, 59.9% of patients in Group A and 55.9% in Group B achieved an SVR (P , 0.051). In genotype 1-infected patients matched by baseline parameters and cumulative RBV dose, SVR rates were 49.6% and 43.7% for Group A and Group B, respectively (P , 0.047); when matched by baseline parameters and RBV starting dose, SVR rates were 49.9% and 44.6%, respectively (P = 0.068). Overall, 21.8% of group A and 29.6% of group B patients discontinued treatment (P , 0.0001). The efficacy and tolerability of peginterferon plus RBV in this large cohort of patients treated in routine daily practice was similar to that in randomized clinical trials. In matched pairs analyses, more patients achieved an SVR with peginterferon alfa-2a compared with peginterferon alfa-2b. [source] Long-Term Monitoring and Identification of Bridge Structural ParametersCOMPUTER-AIDED CIVIL AND INFRASTRUCTURE ENGINEERING, Issue 2 2009Serdar Soyoz This three-span 111-m long bridge is instrumented with 13 acceleration sensors at both the superstructure and the columns. The sensor data are transmitted to a server computer wirelessly. Modal parameters of the bridge, that is, the frequencies and the modal shapes were identified by processing 1,707 vibration data sets collected under traffic excitations, based on which the bridge structural parameters, stiffness and mass, and the soil spring values were identified by employing the neural network technique. The identified superstructure stiffness at the beginning of the monitoring was 97% of the stiffness value based on the design drawings. In the identified modal frequencies, a variation from ,10% to +10% was observed over the monitoring period. In the identified stiffness values of the bridge superstructure, a variation from ,3% to +3% was observed over the monitoring period. Based on the statistical analysis of the collected data for each year, 5% decrease in the first modal frequency and 2% decrease in the superstructure stiffness were observed over the 5-year monitoring period. Probability density functions were obtained for stiffness values each year. Stiffness threshold values for the collapse of the bridge under the operational loading can be determined. Then the number of years can be assessed for which the area under the proposed probability density functions is greater than the threshold value. So the information obtained in this study is valuable for studying aging and long-term performance assessment of similar bridges. [source] Slave prices, the African slave trade, and productivity in the Caribbean, 1674,18071ECONOMIC HISTORY REVIEW, Issue 4 2005DAVID ELTIS We draw wide-ranging implications about slave productivity change by making use of newly collected data on the prices paid for nearly 230,000 slaves as they arrived in the Americas from Africa between 1674 and 1807. Prices for the product that most slaves were destined to produce-sugar-are also available. Together the comprehensive series allow us to derive annual measures of average slave productivity and to compare productivity trends across different sectors of the Caribbean. Average productivity rose throughout the Caribbean, and the pattern of average productivity change across regions was similar, indicating an open slave market. These averages mask sharp differences in the growth of demand for slaves among regions, as reflected by their slave populations. Between 1700 and 1790 the increase in demand ranged from 90 per cent in Barbados to 600 per cent in Jamaica and Cuba; while total factor productivity overall may have doubled. The slave trade accommodated the rising demand. It also served to offset population attrition among the slaves. [source] Airborne gravity tests in the Italian area to improve the geoid model of ItalyGEOPHYSICAL PROSPECTING, Issue 4 2009R. Barzaghi ABSTRACT Airborne gravimetry is an important method for measuring gravity over large unsurveyed areas. This technology has been widely applied in Canada, Antarctica and Greenland to map the gravity fields of these regions and in recent years, in the oil industry. In 2005, two tests in the Italian area were performed by ENI in cooperation with the Politecnico di Milano and the Danish National Space Center. To the knowledge of the authors, these were the first experiments of this kind in Italy and were performed over the Ionian coasts of Calabria and the Maiella Mountains. The Calabria test field is characterized by strong gravity variations due to the geophysical and topographic structure of the area. The ground gravity coverage is also quite dense. It was thus possible to compare airborne gravity with the ground observed values in order to check the precision of the airborne gravimetry. The second campaign was performed in an unsurveyed area centred on the Maiella Mountains, thus filling the data gap of this zone. Comparisons with existing ground data were also carried out in this area. After smoothing, the collected data have an accuracy of 2,3 mgal, as derived by cross-over analysis. Moreover, the collocation method applied to compare and merge ground-based and airborne data proved to be efficient and reliable. The standard deviation of the discrepancies between airborne data and collocation upward continued gravity is, in both cases, less than 8 mgal. In the Maiella test, the gravity field obtained by merging airborne and ground data using collocation also provides a more detailed description of the high-frequency pattern of the geopotential field in this area. [source] The feasibility of electromagnetic gradiometer measurementsGEOPHYSICAL PROSPECTING, Issue 3 2001Daniel Sattel The quantities measured in transient electromagnetic (TEM) surveys are usually either magnetic field components or their time derivatives. Alternatively it might be advantageous to measure the spatial derivatives of these quantities. Such gradiometer measurements are expected to have lower noise levels due to the negative interference of ambient noise recorded by the two receiver coils. Error propagation models are used to compare quantitatively the noise sensitivities of conventional and gradiometer TEM data. To achieve this, eigenvalue decomposition is applied on synthetic data to derive the parameter uncertainties of layered-earth models. The results indicate that near-surface gradient measurements give a superior definition of the shallow conductivity structure, provided noise levels are 20,40 times smaller than those recorded by conventional EM instruments. For a fixed-wing towed-bird gradiometer system to be feasible, a noise reduction factor of at least 50,100 is required. One field test showed that noise reduction factors in excess of 60 are achievable with gradiometer measurements. However, other collected data indicate that the effectiveness of noise reduction can be hampered by the spatial variability of noise such as that encountered in built-up areas. Synthetic data calculated for a vertical plate model confirm the limited depth of detection of vertical gradient data but also indicate some spatial derivatives which offer better lateral resolution than conventional EM data. This high sensitivity to the near-surface conductivity structure suggests the application of EM gradiometers in areas such as environmental and archaeological mapping. [source] Satisfaction with HR practices and commitment to the organisation: why one size does not fit allHUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT JOURNAL, Issue 4 2005Nicholas Kinnie This article examines the links between employees' satisfaction with HR practices and their commitment to the organisation. It draws on recently collected data to examine these links for three groups of employees: professionals, line managers and workers. Satisfaction with some HR practices appears to be linked to the commitment of all employees, while the link for others varies befuwn the three employee groups. These findings pose a challenge to the universalistic model of HRM and have implications for those seeking to design practices that will improve organisational commitment. [source] Cautious hierarchical switching control of stochastic linear systemsINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ADAPTIVE CONTROL AND SIGNAL PROCESSING, Issue 4 2004M.C. Campi Abstract Standard switching control methods are based on the certainty equivalence philosophy in that, at each switching time, the supervisor selects the candidate controller that is better tuned to the currently estimated process model. In this paper, we propose a new supervisory switching logic that takes into account the uncertainty on the process description when performing the controller selection. Specifically, a probability measure describing the likelihood of the different models is computed on-line based on the collected data and, at each switching time, the supervisor selects the candidate controller that, according to this probability measure, performs the best on the average. If the candidate controller class is hierarchically structured so that for each model one has available several controllers with distinct levels of robustness, the supervisor automatically selects the controller that suitably compromises robustness versus performance, given the current level of model uncertainty. The use of randomized algorithms makes the supervisor implementation computationally tractable. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Interrelation between the Poisoning Severity Score, carboxyhaemoglobin levels and in-hospital clinical course of carbon monoxide poisoningINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF CLINICAL PRACTICE, Issue 12 2006A. A. CEVIK Summary The aim of the present study is to evaluate the relationship between the Poisoning Severity Score (PSS) and carboxyhaemoglobin (COHb) levels in patients with carbon monoxide poisoning (COP) using outcome as the measure. The study was designed as a retrospective chart review of patients with final diagnosis of COP. Correlation of PSS and COHb levels at presentation was evaluated with collected data. Majority of the cases were grade 1 (minor) PSS (134 cases, 73.6%) and 93.4% of these patients made a complete recovery. There were six deaths (mortality 3.3%) and six in-hospital major complications (IHMCs) (3.3%) (please specify whether the complications were in the patients who died). There is moderate correlation between PSS and outcome (p < 0.001, r = 0.493). Grade 3 (severe) PSS was significantly different from other grades for outcome (six mortalities and three IHMCs). Patients classified as grade 3 and patients who died had a significantly higher mean age (p < 0.05, 41.8 ± 23.6 and p < 0.01, 60.1 ± 20.3, respectively). Mean COHb level of grade 3 (33.2 ± 13.9%) was significantly higher than that of other grades (p < 0.05). COHb levels according to outcome were not different (? within the patients in grade 3). Decreased level of consciousness, acidosis, tachycardia, high glucose and leucocyte levels showed significant relation with higher PSS, COHb level and adverse outcome. We conclude that the PSS is a reliable guide in COP. Value of the PSS in COP may be enhanced if additional factors and investigations are included. [source] Behaviour of haematological parameters in athletes performing marathons and ultramarathons in altitude (,skyrunners')INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF LABORATORY HEMATOLOGY, Issue 6 2004G. BANFI Summary We observed athletes performing marathons and ultramarathons in altitude over several years to study the behaviour of haematological parameters in order to screen eventual paraphysiological or pathological conditions (sports anaemia). We collected samples from 124 athletes participating in seven races; 23 athletes were recruited in different races: 16 for four times, four for three times, and three for two times. The pre- and post-race values of erythrocytes, haemoglobin and packed cell volume did not show statistically significant differences in the studied athletes. The erythrocytes' indices (MCV, MCH, MCHC) and red cell distribution width (RDW) also were not significantly modified by the strenuous effort. The leukocytes were significantly increased because of immunological involvement during the endurance performance. Platelets and relative indices were not significantly modified. The stability of packed cell volume and haemoglobin in athletes performing training and races in altitude is strong evidence for the use of these parameters as an index of general health status and for illustrating possible abnormal increase because of exogenous stimulation of bone marrow. The preanalytical and analytical accuracy is crucial to assure clinical validity of the collected data: we strictly observed international recommendations in this field. [source] Distribution-based anomaly detection in 3G mobile networks: from theory to practiceINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF NETWORK MANAGEMENT, Issue 5 2010Alessandro D'Alconzo The design of anomaly detection (AD) methods for network traffic has been intensively investigated by the research community in recent years. However, less attention has been devoted to the issues which eventually arise when deploying such tools in a real operational context. We designed a statistical based change detection algorithm for identifying deviations in distribution time series. The proposed method has been applied to the analysis of a large dataset from an operational 3G mobile network, in the perspective of the adoption of such a tool in production. Our algorithm is designed to cope with the marked non-stationarity and daily/weekly seasonality that characterize the traffic mix in a large public network. Several practical issues emerged during the study, including the need to handle incompleteness of the collected data, the difficulty in drilling down the cause of certain alarms, and the need for human assistance in resetting the algorithm after a persistent change in network configuration (e.g. a capacity upgrade). We report on our practical experience, highlighting the key lessons learned and the hands-on experience gained from such an analysis. Finally, we propose a novel methodology based on semi-synthetic traces for tuning and performance assessment of the proposed AD algorithm. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] A framework for network quality monitoring in the VoIP environmentINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF NETWORK MANAGEMENT, Issue 4 2007Ana Flàvia M. de Lima Monitoring speech quality in Voice over IP (VoIP) networks is important to ensure a minimal acceptable level of speech quality for IP calls running through a managed network. Information such as packet loss, codec type, jitter, end-to-end delay and overall speech quality enables the network manager to verify and accurately tune parameters in order to adjust network problems. The present article proposes the deployment of a monitoring architecture that collects, stores and displays speech quality information about concluded voice calls. This architecture is based on our proposed MIB (Management Information Base) VOIPQOS, deployed for speech quality monitoring purposes. Currently, the architecture is totally implemented, but under adjustment and validation tests. In the future, the VOIPQOS MIB can be expanded to automatically analyze collected data and control VoIP clients and network parameters for tuning the overall speech quality of ongoing calls. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Mid-term report on St Luke's College of Nursing's 21st century Center of Excellence Program: Core elements and specific goals of people-centered careJAPAN JOURNAL OF NURSING SCIENCE, Issue 1 2006Hiroko KOMATSU Abstract Aim:, This paper, at the halfway point of the 5 year Center of Excellence (COE) Program, aims to extract common core elements of each COE project working on the development of people-centered care and to clarify future issues related to the COE Program through the evaluation of those elements. Methods:, All data obtained in such research activities, including records, interviews, meeting minutes, and results, are shared for each project in COE section meetings or general assemblies and the findings that are established there are accumulated. We also have set up a working group to develop the people-centered care concept by continuously reviewing the core elements of people-centered care based on the collected data. In order to track the projects in an orderly manner, we classified and organized the activities of the 11 COE projects based on the Process Evaluation Model and reviewed common important elements. Results:, The characteristic components, related to participation, relationships, capacity-building, empowerment, and product (specific achievements), were extracted as common core elements of each COE project. Conclusion:, In order to maintain the sustainability of people-centered care incorporated in communities, concrete strategies for improving economic efficiency, social significance and utility, and evaluation methods need to be developed. [source] Impact of interviewing by proxy in travel survey conducted by telephoneJOURNAL OF ADVANCED TRANSPORTATION, Issue 1 2002Daniel A. Badoe Telephone-interview surveys are a very efficient way of conducting large-scale travel surveys. Recent advancements in computer technology have made it possible to improve upon the quality of data collected by telephone surveys through computerization of the entire sample-control process, and through the direct recording of the collected data into a computer. Notwithstanding these technological advancements, potential sources of bias still exist, including the reliance on an adult member of the household to report the travel information of other household members. Travel data collected in a recent telephone interview survey in the Toronto region is used to examine this issue. The statistical tool used in the research was the Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) technique as implemented within the general linear model framework in SAS. The study-results indicate that reliance on informants to provide travel information for non-informant members of their respective households led to the underreporting of some categories of trips. These underreported trip categories were primarily segments of home-based discretionary trips, and non home-based trips. Since these latter two categories of trips are made primarily outside the morning peak period, estimated factors to adjust for their underreporting were time-period sensitive. Further, the number of vehicles available to the household, gender, and driver license status respectively were also found to be strongly associated with the underreporting of trips and thus were important considerations in the determination of adjustment factors. Work and school trips were found not to be underreported, a not surprising result giving the almost daily repetitiveness of trips made for these purposes and hence the ability of the informant to provide relatively more precise information on them. [source] Management of metadata and automation for mail-in measurements with the APS 11-BM high-throughput, high-resolution synchrotron powder diffractometerJOURNAL OF APPLIED CRYSTALLOGRAPHY, Issue 6 2009Brian H. Toby A high-resolution and high-throughput synchrotron powder diffractometer has been automated for use with samples that are mailed in by Advanced Photon Source users. Implementation of a relational database with web interfaces for both outside users and beamline staff, which is integrated into the facility-wide proposal and safety system, allows all aspects of beamline management to be integrated. This system permits users to request kits for mounting samples, to provide sample safety information, to obtain their collected data and to provide usage information upon project completion in a quick and simple manner. Beamline staff use a separate interface to note receipt of samples, schedule and collect diffraction data, post-process and quality-check data, and dispose of samples. The design of the software and database are discussed in detail. [source] Preparation of poly(acrylonitrile,butadiene,styrene)/montmorillonite nanocomposites and degradation studies during extrusion reprocessingJOURNAL OF APPLIED POLYMER SCIENCE, Issue 4 2009E.-K. Karahaliou Abstract In this study, the preparation of organically modified montmorillonite/poly(acrylonitrile,butadiene,styrene) (ABS) nanocomposites was studied by melt blending in a twin-screw extruder. The composite material was subjected to a series of five extrusion cycles, and the effect of reprocessing on the material's structural properties was investigated. More specifically, chemical changes were studied with attenuated total reflectance/Fourier transform infrared analysis, the thermal response was recorded by differential scanning calorimetry experiments, and the thermal stability was detected with thermogravimetric analysis. Also, the rheological properties of these blends were investigated via melt flow index tests as a measure of their processability during melt mixing and molding processes. Furthermore, the mechanical strength of the obtained mixtures was explored, and the observed interactions were interpreted in terms of the influence of each component on the functional properties of the final mixture. This attempt enriched our knowledge about the recycling of ABS, with the additional aspect of the use of collected data from more complex systems, that is, composite materials, where the montmorillonite nanoparticles play a role in the interactions initiated by repeated processing. The experimental results of this study show that the reprocessing of ABS/montmorillonite induced oxidation products, but the rheological, mechanical, and thermal properties and the thermal and color stabilities of the composites remained almost stable. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2009 [source] Kinetic study of carbon nanotubes synthesis by fluidized bed chemical vapor depositionAICHE JOURNAL, Issue 2 2009R. Philippe Abstract Multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) have been produced with high selectivity by fluidized bed catalytic chemical vapor deposition from ethylene on Fe/Al2O3 catalysts. The influence of operating parameters such as deposition duration, temperature, ethylene and hydrogen partial pressures, and iron loading on MWCNT productivity, process selectivity, characteristics of final powders, and chemical composition of the outlet gases has been analyzed. Using gas phase chromatography, methane and ethane have been detected, whatever are the conditions used. Between 650 and 750°C, no catalyst deactivation occurs because nucleation remains active all along the synthesis, thanks to the explosion of the catalyst grains. Above 650°C, ethane itself produces MWCNTs, whereas methane does not react in the temperature range, 550,750°C. The formation of MWCNTs induces marked bed expansions and sharp decreases of grain density. Apparent kinetic laws have been deduced from the collected data. The apparent partial orders of reaction for ethylene, hydrogen, and iron were found to be 0.75, 0, and 0.28, respectively. © 2008 American Institute of Chemical Engineers AIChE J, 2009 [source] Text-based video content classification for online video-sharing sitesJOURNAL OF THE AMERICAN SOCIETY FOR INFORMATION SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY, Issue 5 2010Chunneng Huang With the emergence of Web 2.0, sharing personal content, communicating ideas, and interacting with other online users in Web 2.0 communities have become daily routines for online users. User-generated data from Web 2.0 sites provide rich personal information (e.g., personal preferences and interests) and can be utilized to obtain insight about cyber communities and their social networks. Many studies have focused on leveraging user-generated information to analyze blogs and forums, but few studies have applied this approach to video-sharing Web sites. In this study, we propose a text-based framework for video content classification of online-video sharing Web sites. Different types of user-generated data (e.g., titles, descriptions, and comments) were used as proxies for online videos, and three types of text features (lexical, syntactic, and content-specific features) were extracted. Three feature-based classification techniques (C4.5, Naïve Bayes, and Support Vector Machine) were used to classify videos. To evaluate the proposed framework, user-generated data from candidate videos, which were identified by searching user-given keywords on YouTube, were first collected. Then, a subset of the collected data was randomly selected and manually tagged by users as our experiment data. The experimental results showed that the proposed approach was able to classify online videos based on users' interests with accuracy rates up to 87.2%, and all three types of text features contributed to discriminating videos. Support Vector Machine outperformed C4.5 and Naïve Bayes techniques in our experiments. In addition, our case study further demonstrated that accurate video-classification results are very useful for identifying implicit cyber communities on video-sharing Web sites. [source] PREVALENCE AND RISK FACTORS IN CHRONIC POLYNEUROPATHY IN THE ELDERLYJOURNAL OF THE PERIPHERAL NERVOUS SYSTEM, Issue 1 2002E. Scarpini The elderly are a population at high risk of polyneuropathy because there is a correlation between age and impairment of the peripheral nervous system and because the number of agents that can damage peripheral nerves, including chronic systemic disorders and neurotoxic drugs, increases with age. The Italian Longitudinal Study on Aging (ILSA), a multicenter project designed to study age-associated diseases, collected data from 8 Italian municipalities. For this study, the definition of peripheral neuropathy by P.J. Dyck (1982) was used. However, only peripheral neuropathies with distal and symmetrical involvement of lower limbs were considered. Diagnosis was articulated in two phases: Phase 1 or screening, administered to all participants. The criteria were: a) self reported diagnosis; b) presence of at least one neurological symptom; and c) presence of at least one positive test at short neurological evaluation. A validation of the screening instruments was performed. Phase 2 or clinical confirmation by a neurologist, based on: a) review of the clinical records; b) a neurological examination; c) a clinical history of the disease; and, d) when available, EMG, blood and spinal fluid examination, and a sural nerve biopsy. Three diagnostic categories were identified: possible, probable and definite DSNLL. The neuropathy was classified as definite only when confirmation by a positive EMG was available. A random sample of 5632 subjects aged 65,84 years was evaluated. A total number of 337 DSNLL were identified (possible, probable, defined). The prevalence is 6.5% (95% C.I. 5.8,7.2) in men and women; the rates by age, geographic area, and clinical severity are described, and the prevalence in the different groups of diabetic patients and non-diabetic subjects is analyzed. The prevalence obtained in our study is slightly lower than that in a similar recent multicentric study (IGPSG, 1995), but the diagnostic criteria were different. Diabetes is the most common associated disorder with the 20.8% of association, followed by toxic/drug exposure (5% of association). [source] Modification of impact craters in the northern plains of Mars: Implications for Amazonian climate historyMETEORITICS & PLANETARY SCIENCE, Issue 10 2006M. A. Kreslavsky Two of the 130 craters have unusually rough ejecta; they are deep, have steep walls, and are apparently the youngest in the population. Icy mantles filling the local subkilometer-scale topographic lows is the main contribution to ejecta smoothing, which occurs at a time scale on the order of tens of Myr. Wall degradation and crater shallowing generally occur at longer time scales, comparable to the duration of the Amazonian period. Many craters are shallow due to filling of the crater with specific ice-rich material of uncertain origin. We use our collected data to infer the nature of the past climate back through the Amazonian, a period prior to ,10,20 Myr ago, when orbital parameter solutions are chaotic and one must rely on geological data to infer climate conditions. We conclude that moderately high obliquity and wide obliquity variations were probable during the last 40,160 Myr. We tentatively conclude that high obliquity peaks (>40,45°) may have occurred episodically through the last 210,430 Myr. A sharp step in the frequency distribution of wall steepness at 20° may indicate a geologically long period prior to that time where obliquity never exceeded 40,45°. [source] Prognostic significance of the immunohistochemical expression of O6 -methylguanine-DNA methyltransferase, P-glycoprotein, and multidrug resistance protein-1 in glioblastomasNEUROPATHOLOGY, Issue 4 2009Takao Nakagawa We studied the expression of O6 -methylguanine-DNA methyltransferase (O6 -MGMT), P-glycoprotein (Pgp), and multidrug resistance protein-1 (MRP-1) in 23 glioblastomas using RT-PCR, methylation-specific PCR, and immunohistochemistry, and analyzed their association with overall patient survival. Univariate analysis of collected data demonstrated that the expressions of O6 -MGMT and MRP-1 detected by immunohistochemistry, in addition to the consistent factors, including preoperative Karnofsky performance scale (KPS), radical surgery, and tumor location and extension, were significant prognostic factors for the overall survival (OS) of patients with glioblastoma, who received nimustine (ACNU)-based chemotherapy in association with surgery and radiotherapy. Among them, following multivariate analysis, preoperative KPS, radical surgery, tumor location, and the expression of O6 -MGMT remained as significant prognostic factors. These findings suggest that immunohistochemical analysis of O6 -MGMT in patients with glioblastoma can be a useful method to predict the effects of chemotherapy and identify alternative chemotherapeutic regimens for O6 -MGMT-positive patients. [source] The outcome of children with acute myeloid leukemia (AML) post-allogeneic stem cell transplantation (SCT) is not improved by the addition of etoposide to the conditioning regimenPEDIATRIC BLOOD & CANCER, Issue 7 2006Mouhab Ayas MD Abstract Background Relapse remains a concern for children with AML undergoing allogeneic SCT, so in an effort to reduce the risk of relapse in these patients, we intensified our pre-SCT preparation by adding etoposide to the standard busulfan and cyclophosphamide regimen. Procedure We retrospectively analyzed the collected data and compared the two groups; Group A (n,=,18) included patients who received busulfan 16 mg/kg plus cyclophosphamide 200 mg/kg (Bu/Cy), and Group B (n,=,48) included patients who received busulfan 12 mg/kg, cyclophosphamide 90 mg/kg in addition to etoposide 60 mg/kg (Bu/Cy/VP). The patients' characteristics were similar in the two groups. Results No significant difference in the overall outcome was noted; the 5-year overall survival was 50% and 53.3% for Groups A and B, respectively (P,=,0.9). Similarly, the 5-year probability of relapse was 64.1% and 46.1% for Groups A and B, respectively (P,=,0.38). The use of etoposide was not associated with increased toxicity. Conclusion The addition of etoposide to the Bu/Cy regimen was well tolerated, but did not appear to improve the outcome. Pediatr Blood Cancer © 2006 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] Miglustat (Zavesca®) in type 1 Gaucher disease: 5-year results of a post-authorisation safety surveillance programmePHARMACOEPIDEMIOLOGY AND DRUG SAFETY, Issue 9 2009Carla E. M. Hollak MD Abstract Purpose Miglustat (Zavesca®) is an orally-available substrate reduction therapy (SRT) for treatment of mild-to-moderate type 1 Gaucher disease (GD1) in adult patients unsuitable for enzyme replacement therapy (ERT). Miglustat has not been evaluated in children with GD1, and is not used during pregnancy and breast-feeding. A non-interventional, prospective, web-based safety surveillance programme was initiated at the time of the European launch of miglustat in 2003, and is ongoing. We report the first 5 years of collected data, focusing on neurological manifestations. Methods Data were collected on 122 GD1 patients between March 2003 and April 2008, representing 244 patient-years cumulative miglustat post-authorisation experience. The electronically-captured data collected from participating physicians includes patient demographics, prior and current therapies, baseline disease manifestations and concurrent conditions, disease severity, duration of miglustat exposure, and safety-relevant information. Results Mean (SD) age at baseline was 46.1 (16.5) years. At baseline, bone disease and neurological manifestations were reported in 55.6 and 28.6% of patients, respectively; the latter included peripheral neuropathy (7.2%) and a wide variety of neurological symptoms and signs. In addition, 23.2% had other health conditions relevant to neurological status. During the reporting period, new neurological manifestations were reported in 23 (18.9%) patients, principally tremor. Thirty-five (28.7%) patients discontinued treatment, predominantly for gastrointestinal (GI) disturbances (11.5%), two-thirds of which occurred during the first 6 months. Conclusion The safety profile of miglustat in GD1 patients included in the safety surveillance programme is overall consistent with that reported in the registration and other clinical trials, and no new safety finding was identified. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Change in sugar, sterol and fatty acid composition in banana meristems caused by sucrose-induced acclimation and its effects on cryopreservationPHYSIOLOGIA PLANTARUM, Issue 1 2006Guo-Yu Zhu To understand the mechanisms of sucrose-induced acclimation in relation to plant cryopreservation, sugars, sterols, fatty acids of different lipid fractions (neutral lipids, glycolipids and sphingolipids and phospholipids), as well as free fatty acids were analyzed in proliferating meristem cultures of different banana varieties. The four banana varieties that were selected show different post-thaw shoot regeneration rates (0,53.4%). All mentioned parameters were analyzed using (1) control meristems that were cultured on a normal sucrose concentration (0.09 M), which resulted in low survival after cryopreservation; and (2) 2-week sucrose precultured meristems (0.4 M). This sucrose preculture, essential for regeneration after cryopreservation, resulted in a significant increase of each of seven sugars detected. The ratio of stigmasterol/sitosterol (St/Si) in sucrose-pretreated meristems significantly increased. The sucrose pretreatment also resulted in a significant increase of total fatty acid content of the neutral lipid fraction and of the glycolipid and sphingolipid fraction, as well as the total free fatty acid content. The individual fatty acid content of the phospholipids was differently changed by the sucrose pretreatment for the given varieties studied. In most cases, sucrose pretreatment resulted in an increase of the double bond index (DBI) in the neutral lipids and a decrease of DBI in the glycolipids and sphingolipids, in phospholipids as well as in free fatty acids. Principal component analysis of all collected data revealed that (1) for the control material, sucrose and total sugar contents were closely linked to the post-thaw shoot regeneration, suggesting that sucrose and total sugar may be main limiting factors to survive cryopreservation; (2) accumulation of large quantities of sugars (glucose, fructose, sucrose and total sugar) in sucrose-pretreated material cannot explain the differences in survival after cryopreservation of the four banana varieties. We assume that a minimal amount of sugars is needed in meristem cultures to survive cryopreservation. Still, other limiting factors do influence the survival following the sucrose pretreatment. We observed that the parameters which are closely linked to the post-thaw shoot regeneration are a minimal change in the ratios of St/Si, the minimal change of the DBI of phospholipids and free fatty acids, as well as linoleic acid content (C18:2); and (3) inositol, raffinose, myristic acid (C14:0) and oleic acid (C18:1) were present in small quantities; however, they could be correlated to survival after cryopreservation, suggesting that they may be also involved in cryopreservation process. [source] Simultaneous determination of Rubisco carboxylase and oxygenase kinetic parameters in Triticum aestivum and Zea mays using membrane inlet mass spectrometryPLANT CELL & ENVIRONMENT, Issue 3 2010A. B. COUSINS ABSTRACT The lack of complete Rubisco kinetic data for numerous species is partly because of the time consuming nature of the multiple methods needed to assay all of the Rubisco parameters. We have developed a membrane inlet mass spectrometer method that simultaneously determines the rate of Rubisco carboxylation (vc) and oxygenation (vo), and the CO2 and O2 concentrations. Using the collected data, the Michaels-Menten equations for vc and vo in response to changing CO2 and O2 concentrations were simultaneously solved for the CO2 (Kc) and O2 (Ko) constants, the maximum turnover rates of the enzyme for CO2 (kcatCO2) and O2 (kcatO2) and the specificity for CO2 relative to O2 (Sc/o). In the C4 species Zea mays Kc was higher but Ko was lower compared with the C3 species Triticum aestivum. The kcatCO2 was higher and the kcatO2 lower in Z. mays compared with T. aestivum and Sc/o was similar in the two species. The Vomax/Vcmax was lower in Z. mays and thus did not correlate with changes in Sc/o. In conclusion, this mass spectrometer system provides a means of simultaneously determining the important Rubisco kinetic parameters, Kc, Ko, kcatCO2,kcatO2 and Sc/o from the same set of assays. [source] Kaolin,epoxy-based nanocomposites: A complementary study of the epoxy curing by FTIR and fluorescencePOLYMER COMPOSITES, Issue 5 2010P.D. Castrillo This work is focused on the study of the effect exerted by the presence of kaolin on the cure reaction of an epoxy-based polymer, discussing the influence of different kaolin pretreatments. During the last few years, the interest on polymer matrix nanocomposite materials has sharply increased because generally they show improved properties when compared with those of the neat polymer (without filler). Among this sort of materials, polymer clay nanocomposites have been widely studied. However, there are not many works about kaolin-based composites. Although several techniques have been used to monitor the cure process in epoxy-based composites such as Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) or differential scanning calorimetry, only the use of the fluorescent response from a fluorophore seems to be adequate to monitor the reaction exactly at the interfaces at a molecular scale. In this work, FTIR and fluorimetry were used to monitor the cure reaction of the different composite systems at different curing temperatures. The analysis of FTIR experiments revealed that the presence of the reinforcement clay affects the extent of the cure reaction depending on the nature of its surface. On the other hand, the use of a fluorescent molecule chemically bonded to the reinforcement allows studying the curing exactly at the interface. Finally, with the collected data, a kinetic analysis was done and the results obtained were compared in terms of the technique used and the information source (interface or bulk). At the interface, the activation energy for the epoxy reaction is lower than that carried out in the bulk indicating that the reaction at the interface proceeds via a particular mechanism for which the reaction is favored. It seems that a higher amount of hydroxyl groups is capable of catalyzing the cure reaction. POLYM. COMPOS., 2010. © 2009 Society of Plastics Engineers [source] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||